Persona: Merc for Hire
by Ark2012
Summary: What happens when a Persona user isn't in a team with others? The answer is Caius Gevauden, a Persona user living the easy life of casual Shadow hunting. But when a series of events introduce him to a larger picture of Personas and Shadows, can Caius overcome his mercenary mindset and play his part in saving the world? OC, P3 and P4 cast, Post Ultimax.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Author's Note: So this is mainly a novelization of my OC in the Persona Universe. Timeline-wise it would be around a year or so after Persona 4 Arena Ultimax. Right now there's only the OC, since it's told from his perspective and he's kind of a lone wolf, but the canon characters would appear a few chapters in and play a larger role. In fact, the whole first "arc" so to speak would be how the OC met the main cast.

I should also say that I took a page out of P4G and gave my OC a special skill. Don't worry if you don't understand what it does, since there will be a general sheet of the revealed affinities and skills of the OC's Persona at the end of every chapter.

So without further ado, enjoy the first chapter!

_Inner thoughts_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>The Green Moon overlooked Tokyo's streets, which were overflowing with blood and littered with eerie coffins. None of the street lights functioned, nor did anything function electronically anyway. Silence prevailed, consuming all.<p>

And that's just the way I like it.

Strolling down the empty streets of Tokyo, I hummed merrily, piercing the silence with the happy tune of _Twisted Nerve_. My purple hood was up, creating a comforting area of warmth right around my scalp, while my left hand was at my hip, lightly tracing the leather holster strapped on my leg. My other hand grasped the handle of a sawn-off double barrel shotgun which rested on my right shoulder.

_Yep, nothing special going on here folks, just your average Dark Hour stroll going on._ I chuckled at the absurdity of that thought. As if the Dark Hour was anything average….

A loud creaking sound drew my attention. Quickening up my pace, I jogged towards the sound, footsteps splashing in the puddles of blood. Anticipation was building up in my mind. One thing the Dark Hour is sure to guarantee for people like me is entertainment. And boy do you need that if you suddenly find yourself in possession of an extra hour in which nothing electronic functions.

Rounding the corner, I saw a Gigas wrenching at the lid of a coffin in an alley way. It seems to be making progress as well, since the coffin was already half-open. Just a little bit more, and the Gigas would be able to throw open the lid and reveal the sleeper within. Guess whoever's in there is real lucky I showed up. I placed two fingers in my mouth and whistled shrilly to get its attention.

I succeeded. The Gigas snapped its attention towards me, baleful eyes almost glowing in the dark. It turned towards me and flexed its muscles threateningly.

I smiled and crouched down a bit, patting my legs with my left hand: "So you wanna play, lil' Hogan? Well, come on, come to Daddy!"

The Gigas, apparently enraged by my taunt, roared and came charging towards me, fist raised and ready. My hand flashed down to the leather holster and a muzzle was soon pressed snugly against my chin. The sound of shattering glass was barely audible within the giant crash resulting from the Giga's strike.

When the dust settled, the Gigas flinched and jumped back, drawing distance between the combatants. Standing right in front of me was a Jester dressed in a faded motley colored in shades of purple, yellow, and green. Each of the Jester's limbs were manacled, with the chains all leading to a giant cross, like a marionette. The cross was held in the Jester's left hand, while the right hand grasped a mask portraying an expression of utmost calm and tranquility. But the Jester's face was the exact opposite of the mask he held. With eyes were bloodshot and wide, a nose where only two slits remain, and a smile so wide that more gum showed than teeth, he was the portrait of madness.

The giant marionette cross was faced towards the Gigas, and slightly smoking from receiving the blow. I lowered my Evoker and sneered at the bewildered Shadow in front of me.

"My, my, my, are you really that ignorant that you took my words for real? I mean, haven't you heard of **Jester's Privileges**?"

At my hidden command, the Jester threw his head back and roared in maniacal laughter. As I heard it, I felt fully lighter and stronger than I usually do. Judging by the Giga's panicked expression, the opposite is happening for him. The shadowed turned around and tried to escape, but stumbled due to not being used to the feeling of debilitation.

I, however, have no such problem as I sprinted towards and past the giant lumbering Gigas. Ducking under his punch, I let out a laugh of exhilaration as I swung my shotgun up and unloaded both barrels straight into the Shadow's torso. The Persona-reinforced shot sent the Gigas stumbling back towards where the Jester waited. I snapped my fingers towards the Jester.

"Chicot, **Bufudyne**."

Within the blink of an eye, the Gigas was encased in a thick block of ice. Strolling casually towards the trapped shadow, I lightly tapped on the ice with the butt of my gun.

The slab of ice completely shattered, with the shadow inside it. I looked down at the shattered mess and covered my mouth in mock surprise.

"Oops…"

Chicot, the jester and my Persona, cackled madly at my antics before fading away. I felt him settle down comfortably at the back of my head somewhere. Chuckling to myself, I turned around to look at the coffin that the Gigas was trying to open. There was a faint rustling coming out from it, and I tensed up, alarmed.

_Surely there won't be a shadow inside, right?_

Jogging towards the coffin, I peaked inside and let out a groan of relief. It was just the inhabitant of the coffin moving a bit. As far as I can see, it's a girl, late teens to early 20s I think… she started rubbing her eyes and looked at me groggily.

"Wait….. wh-" *wham*

I slammed the coffin shut before she could finish the question. There are things that are better off remaining unknown, and the Dark Hour is like that towards a non-Persona user. Now that her coffin is completely shut, she'll pass out again. Once the Dark Hour is over, she'll remember none of it and return to her normal life.

_'Or she would get hit by a memory, out of nowhere, of waking up, seeing a face, and having a coffin lid slammed down upon her.'_ A grating voice muttered in the back of my head. I snickered at Chicot's remark, the image of that girl blinking confusedly at a random memory while the rest of Tokyo rushed around her being too amusing to resist.

'_She was good looking as well. Maybe you should've asked for her number or something?'_

_ 'Chicot, we've been through this. With the life I lead, I can't get into a relationship with anyone other than a Persona-user. And you know full well she is not a Persona-user.'_

_ 'But think about all the girls you're missing out on! I mean, look around! Well, not now since everyone's transmogrified, but you get what I mean!'_

_ 'Down, boy. Libido has no place in the Dark Hour.'_

_ 'Man, you're no fun…'_

Turning around towards the mess that was the Gigas, I crouched down and sifted through the murky sludge, grimacing at the task. _Yuck… As if fighting them wasn't enough…._ After a few minutes, I found a shiny golden belt and a gemstone. With this and all that I've gathered this month then I should be able to cover food, rent, other bills, and still have some money left over for monthly spending.

_Who needs a job when you've got a Persona? Shadows are walking treasure chests!_

Smiling to myself, I reached into my jacket and pulled out a mechanical pocket watch. There's only 15 minutes left of the Dark Hour, so I should head back to my apartment…

* * *

><p>The Dark Hour ended almost the minute my apartment door clicked shut. The green hue covering the moon dissipated, and I could hear my landlord walking around in the hall. It was because of his coffin standing squat in the middle of the corridor that I almost didn't make it into my suite in time, but all's well that ends well.<p>

The apartment was roomy for just one person. A living room with a desk which also served as a nice dining table, a couch, and a flat screen TV with a PS3 hooked on. A small, yet fully stocked, kitchen. And of course there's a bedroom and bathroom. That's all a guy really needed to get by life.

Throwing my loot for the night onto the couch, I went to the bathroom, stripped down, and turned the shower on. Sighing in relief as the hot water washed over me, I glanced at my reflection on the glass doors of the shower. A lean face with short spikey black hair glanced back. Reaching towards Chicot, I remarked:

_'Yo, Chicot. Wonder what tomorrow would bring?'_

_ 'Eh, who cares? You can't start tomorrow without finishing up today. And for today, life is good.'_

I chuckled in amusement as I dried out my hair and donned a set of pajamas. I know more than others that life rarely runs smoothly, especially for a Persona-user. But as I threw myself on the bed and closed my eyes, I can't help but agree with Chicot.

_Yeah. Life is good._

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: ? Ice: ? Wind: ? Thunder: ? Light: ? Darkness: ?

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

?

?

?

?

?

?


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

I woke up some time around noon, and feeling absolutely sore to the bones. I guess that's what I get for going shadow hunting three days in a row…..

_'Why can't you just send me in front like any other Persona user? Instead, you have to reverse the roles and charge in front like a bloody idiot, while I just buff you up and throw Bufu spells from afar.'_

_ 'Shut up Chicot. I fight however I want to. And plus, whatever injury you sustain reflects upon me too, so it really wouldn't make such a difference…'_

_ 'Well, for one thing I'm holding a GIANT CROSS, which could be used as a SHIELD. And secondly, the same cut on me would translate to a smaller cut on you, since I'm larger than you.'_

_ 'Yeah, but what's the fun in that?'_

While we were bickering, I finished up my morning (or more like, noon) cleanup routine and settled down for a breakfast of bacon and eggs. Well, more like meat strips and eggs, since I just can't find perfect American bacon in Tokyo. Thinking about it, I never did have good ol' fashioned bacon since I was a kid…. Leaning back, I reminisced about earlier days spent on the suburban streets just off Toronto, Canada. Before all this mess, and before….

_'Before I showed up?'_ Chicot's voice was a mix of envy and…sadness?

_'Why are you so glum? I was just reminiscing.'_

_ 'I can feel the happiness in those memories.'_ Chicot's mental voice was subdued, _'I have never sensed such deep rooted happiness in you since I was born.' _

_'Is that what you were worried about? You fool… How many times do I have to tell you that I owe you an utmost debt of gratitude, just for being there?'_

_ 'I guess so…. Ok then! So what's on the agenda for today? Nightclub, bar, ohhh…. Maybe even a strip club?' _I sighed. Chicot was back to normal. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing.

'_Ammunition and the pawnshop.'_

_ 'What?!'_

_ 'And straight back home.'_

_ 'WHAAAAAAAT?!'_

Ignoring Chicot's string of curses floating round the back of my head, I headed down to my apartment basement with my bag of loot from yesterday, unlocking the front door and stepping into the musty air. For anyone else the lingering aroma of coal would be nauseating, but for me it was refreshing. The landlord had no use for the giant basement, since nobody would rent it, so he gladly sold the entire floor to me. At an absurd price as well, no haggling whatsoever. My mood darkened a bit at that thought. I had to pawn a few prized Shadow trophies to afford the price he gave.

_He has no idea how hard these Guardian Towers were to take down….. And the renovations weren't cheap either….._

Flicking on the light switch, the renovations I made came to light. A giant ventilation system ran across the ceiling, one end connecting to the sewers (where the air went out) and the other connecting to a window (where the air comes in). A messy work bench sat in the corner of the room, various tools scattered on its surface, including a mortar and pestle. But the most noticeable of the bunch was the giant coal furnace standing in the middle of the room, connected to an electrical air pump. A stone bowl and several casts lay on the side, as well as a pair of leather gloves and a set of tongs. A set of hammers hung on the wall behind the furnace, and an anvil can be seen peeking out of the corner of the room.

I flicked on the ventilation system and strolled towards the furnace, throwing down my bag and picking up a few loose bits of wood from a shelf on the way. Clearing away the residual coal from my last casting, I set the wood up in small tent shape and got to work starting the fire with a box of matches and newspaper.

The thing is, Japan has really tight gun control laws. It was quite a pain to get my own sawn-off Lupara in the first place, and I don't really look forward to going through all that trouble and risk every month to obtain the shells I need. So I cast my own from whatever brass junk I find. It's much cheaper and safer than buying the shells on the black market, and it offers me a bit of customization that isn't offered anywhere else…

The fire was flickering nicely, so I turned on the air pump and scooped a pile of coal on top. Averting my eyes from the sudden blast of light coming from the fire leaping up, I dropped into the stone bowl several brass water taps I found in the junk, and carefully placed the bowl on top of the fire with the tongs. It would take a while to melt, so I could leave it there for now. Plus, when brass melts, it creates a bright emerald flame that flares out of the bowl. There's no way in Hell I would miss that.

I rummaged through my bag and pulled out a leather pouch, and emptied the contents on the workbench. Mazio gems, Mabufu gems, Maragi gems….. all of them glittering on the dusty surface of my workbench. Smiling to myself, I grabbed the mortar and dropped a Maragi gem into it.

_Time to test out my theory…._

* * *

><p>Later in the evening, I was sitting in the local bar staring at the bottle of whiskey standing in front of me. Somehow Chicot has managed to drag me out here. Don't ask me how.<p>

_'C'mon Caius, you need to relax a bit. Talk to the ladies, maybe get some. You need this for your own good.'_

_ 'How can I talk to the ladies when they can't ever understand what makes me myself? I can't reveal you, I can't tell them why I behave weirdly around midnight. And if I 'get some' as you suggested, I would have to explain how I suddenly teleported from one part of the room to the other in the second it takes for midnight to pass. And don't tell me I NEED the alcohol. I could abstain if I didn't come to the bar.'_

I downed my drink, and knocked on the bar with my knuckle. The bartender, Saitou, walked over with a grin.

"More whiskey, Gevauden? I see you haven't finished your bottle yet."

"Nah. You got anything to eat Saitou?"

"I do believe we have some fresh sashimi. Shall I bring out a plate, Gevauden?"

"Sure thing. And haven't I told you to call me Caius?"

"Ah, but you are a customer, and it is the Japanese way to refer to customers with their last names. Your experience in the West has given you different values I see."

"Eh, whatever floats your boat. I swear that you do that just to irk me though."

"Of course not. Now if you will excuse me, I shall go fetch the sashimi." Holding an expression of mock hurt, Saitou went to the kitchen, but amusement was practically radiating from him. I snorted to myself.

_Japanese culture my foot. He's just doing it to mess with me._

Saitou came back quickly, dropping off a plate of sashimi in front of me and insisting on calling me by my last name the whole while. As if I haven't been coming to his bar for the last 3 years or so. I sighed and dug into my food, seasoning the raw fish with soy sauce and wasabi. As usual, it tasted awesome. Perhaps I'll just finish up the food and drink, and then head back for the night….

'_Oh no you don't. You should stay and socialize with someone. Anyone. You need human interaction. You need to start your life again.'_ Chicot's voice was firm. Firmer then what I've heard in a long time. I paused before responding.

'_What's wrong with my life? I like it the way it is.'_

'_What's wrong with your life? Everything is wrong. Every day you wake up, make ammunition, buy groceries, sell shadow loot, play Skyrim, and come to this bar to eat and/or get drunk. Every two to three days you go out in the Dark Hour and kick Shadow butt. Every now and then you flirt with a lady, you get a lap dance every month or so, and I can tell it's only a minor distraction for you. 90 percent of your time is spent getting ready for battles in the Dark Hour, which you go at it with only me in your company. You need human interactions man, and I don't mean the random banter with Saitou. I don't even mean a girlfriend or something like that. You need a friend.'_

'_Chicot, I have friends.'_

'_Oh yeah? Well where are they? It's been 5 years since we heard anything from Strega.'_

The name raises a lump in my throat. The thin and snarky Takaya, with his absolute refusal to wear a shirt, even as his body broke down from the suppressants. Said it was because he wanted to feel every living moment to the fullest before his inevitable early death. Jin, who was a pain in the butt sometimes, but was absolutely loyal to all those he considered friends and had a great sense of humor when not engrossed in his laptop. And Chidori, dressed in so many ridiculous frills and laces, who was quite axe-crazy when annoyed to an extent yet could be the most caring and loving caretaker whenever one of us got injured one way or the other. And then there's me…. I reached inside my jacket, feeling the holstered evoker inside and quietly tracing the letters marked on the barrel.

But Strega was dead. I left them years ago over conflicting ideals, but it was still quite a shock to see them on the newspapers a few years back. Then everyone forgot. Even me, for a short time. Then I remembered, but nobody else did. Even the newspaper article that reported their speech mysteriously disappeared. It was like their existence was erased in all but my memory. I slightly raised my glass and muttered a toast in their memory before downing it. If nobody in this world remembers the existence of my past friends, the least I can do is to mourn them properly as friends should.

Then I shook my head slightly to clear it of those thoughts.

'_You miss them right? So do I. Medea, Hypnos, and Moros were quite fun to fight alongside, and I haven't met another Persona in a long, long time.'_ Chicot's voice held sadness, but quickly took a firmer turn. _'But that's not the point here. You are still holding on to their deaths. You need to move on bro.'_

'_I have. I'm here, am I not? And I have made friends since then.'_

'_Oh, you mean Adachi? Yeah, I've gotta admit, those were your happier days. But then…'_

Chicot's words trailed off, but he didn't need to finish them. Tohru Adachi of the Tokyo PD. He used to frequent this bar a lot, and we often talked. Before I knew it, I was starting to care about that guy, even though I was still frequently annoyed by his over optimism. He had goals and dreams, and was excited to finally make detective after years of hard work. Then one day he came to this bar completely crestfallen. I still remember the conversation that day:

_I looked up and saw Adachi head in my direction. I raised an eyebrow at his expression._

"_You look like you need a drink. Here, it's on me." I offered him a shot of whiskey. He downed it in one swing._

_ "Man, I fucked up. Big time. And it ain't even my fault…" Adachi looked up at me, despair in his eyes. "I'm transferring tomorrow. To this small town named Inaba." _

_ I did a double take and recomposed myself. "Why? What did you do?"_

_ "It was a hostage situation. Lady gets grabbed by crook and held hostage, right? Well, I was part of the confronting party and was supposed to parley with the guy. Things went well and we almost reached a conclusion. The dude would let the lady go and have a lessened sentence, and I guaranteed my protection to the guy when he's in the hold. All's good and well, and the superiors actually agreed to all the agreed upon conditions. Then that bitch…" Adachi's face contorted with hatred, "she thought she was being smart, and rammed the dude's foot with the heel of her high heels. I saw the guy look at her angrily and decide to kill her, agreement be dammed. So I drew and shot." He let out a soft chuckle at that memory._

_ "I was the fastest draw and best shot in my class in Police Academy. Hit that guy right between the eyes before he could kill the hostage. But as it turns out, I scratched the pretty little hostage's pretty little face with my bullet, and she sued." Adachi let his head hang and let out a sigh. "She didn't win that court case, but she succeeded in persuading the chief to send no out to the middle of nowhere. Inaba… never even heard of that place before."_

_ "That's tough, man. Here, your drinks tonight are on me. Think of it as a farewell present." We touched glasses._

I rubbed my temple, throwing away the image of our last meeting. As far as I know, one year after Adachi left I read about the Inaba murder cases, and his arrest. I was half expecting the world to forget about him, just like they did Strega, but that never happened. They still remember him, but remember him as a cold-hearted maniac killer. They might as well have forgotten about him, all things considered.

_The world is a cold, unforgiving place…._ I took another swig of whiskey, and sensed Chicot's lingering question at the back of my head.

_'Maybe someday, Chicot. Maybe I'll be ready to lay my ghosts to rest and restart my life someday. Just….. not today.'_

_ 'That's all I ask, Caius. That's all I ask….'_

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: ? Ice: ? Wind: ? Thunder: ? Light: ? Darkness: ?

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

?

?

?

?

?

?

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Sorry for the slightly depressing Chapter, but I thought it was worth it to show what Caius has been through and why he acts the way he does now.<p>

BLACK FLAME09: Actually I pictured Caius as a Jester/Hunger when I designed the Persona, but as the backstory laid out I figured he fit Death better. So you're half right!

Thank you for reading! Please review….


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>I stumbled out of the bar, feeling at peace with the world. I also felt as though the ground was vaguely shaking under me, and that my brain was functioning with extreme lag right now. But that part wasn't important. Not much was once you had a full bottle of whiskey. Humming an off-tune, I checked discreetly that my evoker and shotgun was still with me, safely tucked out of sight in the folds of my jacket. Happy that I still had them, I started to waltz my way back to my apartment…<p>

_'You're going to regret this tomorrow morning.'_ Chicot noted, wry amusement evident from his voice. When I first started drinking, a few years back, Chicot would get drunk once I did. But after time we learned how to keep the drunkenness in only one of us (which is me every single time), so that at least one of us is sober if a situation arises.

_'Well, ain't your problem. And I'll worry about sobering up tomorrow morning, thank you very much….'_

As if the world was trying to throw a wrench in my plans, a sudden silence fell upon us. Blood started seeping out of every crevice around, and the random passerby was suddenly replaced with vertically placed coffins. Apparently I was in the bar a lot longer than I thought… fumbling a bit with the strap of the holster, I lifted my evoker and pressed the muzzle firmly on the underside of my jaw, and pulled the trigger. My inebriation made the farce of shooting oneself in the head almost pleasant, which wasn't exactly comforting for the sober mind. Fortunately I wasn't sober yet.

"Chicot, **Amrita**."

The jester appeared briefly, waving a hand over me, showering me with a pile of sparkles. Immediately I felt completely invigorated, all traces of drunkenness gone. This is the other reason why it is a boon that Chicot can stay sober when I knock myself out with various liquors.

_'What did you say about sobering up tomorrow morning?'_

_ 'Shut up. This is partially your fault you know.' _I silently rebuked while quickly inserting shells into the shotgun, snapping the barrel back into place with an audible click. _'If you didn't insist so, I would have never stayed so long in the bar, and would've gotten drunk in my room instead.' _ I took out a leather gun belt with all my rounds hanging on it and fastened it around my waist, while the evoker's holster now hung on my left hip.

Resting the barrel of the shotgun on my shoulder, I pulled my hood up and started strolling down the street, just like the night before. Just for the full effects of déjà vu, I started humming _Twisted Nerves_ as I waltzed down the streets.

_Now we just need a shadow attack for the pattern to be complete…._

As if on cue, a scream came out of nowhere. It was high-pitched, yet definitely masculine. I frowned a bit at that before sprinting towards the direction of the scream.

_Okay, so the victim is male and already completely free from his coffin. Never dealt with that before…. But shouldn't be that different. And I'd much rather be saving a cute girl anyway…._

Turning around the corner, I saw a grisly sight. A well-dressed man was sitting on the ground, slowly crawling away from three Mayas in which surround him. Behind the shadows, two Muttering Tiaras were busy munching on a corpse each. Judging by the pistols held in the corpse's dead grasps, they were supposed to be some kind of bodyguards for the well-dressed man. Also judging by the shattered coffin next to their bodies, they were not born with a Persona. One coffin still remained more or less intact though, with only its lid wide open on its hinges.

'_I guess we can assume that the intact one belongs to the survivor…'_ Chicot spoke up.

_'Guess so. Okay, less talking, more shadow butt-kicking.'_

I jumped in front of the Maya closest to the victim just as it was about to pounce. Swinging my gun around, I struck the shadow right on the mask with the butt of my gun mid-jump, stunning it. Snapping the gun around, I struck the second Maya at the temple area of its mask, and met the third with a solid buckshot. The third disintegrated, but the first two just regained their footing and kept coming.

_Dam… guess a simple hit wasn't enough to kill them…._

I was quickly reloading the shotgun when a spurt of fire came from somewhere behind the Mayas and arced towards me. Almost instantly I felt my body react of its own and did a one-handed cartwheel out of the way, and another quick backflip to avoid two more Agi spells. Almost casually, I took aim with my shotgun in mid-air and released two shots at the remaining Mayas, shattering their masks and sending them screaming to oblivion.

"**Angelic Grace**…. I really owe Chicot one." I muttered quietly as I landed in a crouch, facing the Muttering Tiaras. I'm in fairly good shape, if I do say so myself, but there's no way I could have pulled off that inhuman display of gymnastics if I didn't have Chicot. The only part of that crazy maneuver that I could claim any credit for was shooting at the Mayas.

_'You're welcome, but there's certainly nothing 'Angelic' about you…'_ Chicot snickered slightly at the back of my head.

_'Why thank you Captain Obvious. I don't know how I get by life without you. Now shut up and do you actual job.'_

I grabbed my evoker and pointed it to my chin, ready to end this fight. My fingers tightened down on the trigger as I braced myself for the immense feeling of dread and death that followed each shot of the evoker. But instead of the sound of shattering glass and the mixed feeling of dread and exhilaration that followed each Persona summoning, I was suddenly launched to the side and felt a set of huge jaws clamping down on me.

The evoker was knocked out of my hands as I swung around my shotgun to wedge the barrel between maws of the Hablerie that just tackled me. If it wasn't for the set of Barbaric Bracers I wore under the sleeves of my hoodie, my left arm would have been chomped off directly.

_'The Hell did he come from?' _Chicot screamed in my mind.

_'I don't know! Now shut up, maybe you didn't notice but I'm kinda busy right now!'_ Grappling against the Hablerie, I spotted two more Agi spells headed my way, trailing a deadly arc behind them.

_Crap, crap, crap, crap, CRAP!_

Swinging my weight around, I swung the Halberie between me and the Agi spells, gritting my teeth at the pain in my left arm from all the abuse it was taking.

The first blast of fire ripped through the Halberie and it died with a shriek. The second shot right through the shadow corpse and hit me square on the chest, sending me flying back and slamming my back into a brick wall, knocking the wind out of me. I instinctively rolled to one side, not exactly aware of where I was going, but that proved to be a right decision as another blast of flame struck directly where I was sitting. I kept on rolling until I was behind some kind of cover. Probably a huge trash can or something like that.

I mindlessly fumbled with my belt, clumsily reloading my gun while waiting for the world to stop spinning, both from the Agi spell and the multiple rolls I did to get there. Turning my head around, I saw a trembling heap which revealed itself to be the well-dressed man, curled in a fetal position with his head wrapped in his arms. Helpless and pathetic, but uninjured.

_Am I really going to die for that worthless thing? How bothersome…. Tch, but I started this, might as well finish it up…._

Peeking around the corner, I drew back immediately as an Agi spell was thrown in my corner again. And more just came along, blast after blast. I could feel the vibrations coming from the other end of my meagre shelter. This thing, whatever it was, isn't going to hold out for long as cover. I took a deep breath, and tried to piece together the picture I obtained from that glimpse I caught before the Agi spells forced me back into my shelter.

_The situation: Two Muttering Tiaras floating in wait. One corpse behind them, slowly bubbling into black goo from which a Halberie was emerging. That explains where the other Halberie came from. My evoker is lying almost directly under the Tiaras. _

_My goal: Get the evoker, or just kill all three shadows by shotgun. Due to my gun being a double shot Lupara, and the fact that the Halberie would definitely stop me from killing the Tiaras first, the first option seems much better. _

_My assets: Angelic Grace, Barbaric Bracers, one shotgun, a bunch of shotgun rounds, and…. Some experimental shots._

I quickly fumbled at my belt and fished out a shotgun round marked out with a blue tape with black edges. Quickly swapping out the normal rounds in my gun with the marked ones, I got ready to rejoin the battle. It's definitely a gamble, but that's true for every battle right?

'_Time to jump of the ledge, my friend. We trend a dangerous path, but what a glorious flight either way!'_ Chicot cackled in the back on my mind. I cracked a maniacal smile myself.

Planning time is over. Now it's just killing time.

The shelter I was hiding behind finally broke down into a flaming wreck. Sprinting out from behind the residual fire, I did flips and cartwheels around the Tiaras while they tried to catch me with an Agi spell. The bursts of fire blooming around my dodging figure resembled a fantastical display of fireworks. I ducked and weaved, waiting for the perfect chance to strike.

The Halberie finally got impatient and charged at me, jaws open. I waited until it was almost on me before leaping into a front flip over the charging Shadow. When I landed, I was in the middle between all three shadows. Swinging my gun up so that the barrel was vertical in front of my face and pointing upwards, I felt my face pull into a wide grin of maniacal triumph as I pulled both triggers.

Two bright blue arcs of electricity shot upwards and spit into six different arcs, two for each shadow. I heard the Halbarie's death screams behind me, while the Tiaras were a bit hardier towards the relatively weak lightning strikes.

**Mazio Gem**….. By grinding down the gems and using them as bullet fillings, I was able to use two mazio gems to imitate the effects of a much more powerful lightning spell.

The two Tiaras were winded but not quite dead. That's fine by me. I broke out in a sprint towards the two shadows and jumped into a roll right in front of them, dropping my shotgun in the process. If I don't get the evoker with this chance, I won't live long enough to reload that gun anyway.

Focusing solely on the glinting evoker on the ground, I scrapped the ground with the tips of my fingers while I grabbed the grip. Following instinct, I curled my back and lowered my head, allowing the back of my right shoulder to meet the ground, and starting a fast roll. I stopped in a half-kneeling position, the evoker pointed at my head.

"Chicot! **MABUFUDYNE!**" I roared as the spiritual bullet from the evoker tore through my mind and ripped Chicot out from the top of my head.

'_With PLEASURE!'_ Chicot let out a blood chillingly maniacal laugh as a whirlwind of ice formed around him and struck both Tiaras at the same time. With a scream, both shadows shattered into icy shards. Still laughing uncontrollably, Chicot returned to the back of my head.

I breathed in deeply as I holstered my evoker. Despite how long I've been doing this with Chicot, shooting oneself with an evoker is never pleasant business. In fact, it would defy the purpose if it was. Turning around to retrieve my shotgun, I found Mr. Well-Dressed standing right behind me. He was smiling with relief, but there was a glint in his eyes I didn't like. It was like a collector finally finding a long sought-after piece of art. He opened his mouth and a high-pitched, oily voice came out:

"I would like to thank you so much for saving my life… I am Watanabe from the Prometheus Project, formerly funded by the Kirijo Corps. I would like to extend to you an invitation to join-"

I spun around and delivered a heavy kick directly to his temple. Watanabe collapsed without another word. Checking his pulse to make sure he was still alive, I heaved a sigh.

_First I have to save him, now I have to deal with his marketing? What the hell… Hope he gets a concussion and forget all about this._

I pulled on a pair of leather gloves and searched Watanabe's pockets, finding a wallet and taking out all the cash within, then returning the wallet to where I found it. Since I risked my life for this guy, it's only natural that I want some form of payment. Only the cash, mind you. I don't touch another person's credit card or ID.

After that was over, I dragged Watanabe's limp body into his coffin, slammed the lid shut, and turned around to loot the shadow bodies.

I'm really looking forward to a good night's sleep…

* * *

><p>I woke up with a start, and found myself unable to breathe properly. I can't see anything either, and it feels like I'm being jostled around in a car…<p>

_What the hell? I remember going back to my apartment before the Dark Hour ended and collapsing on my bed directly after, but what the hell is this?_

I moved my head around. I'm almost certain there's some sort of bag over my head. I can also hear vague voices talking in the background.

"Oh look, the dude's awake." A gruff voice came from close to my left.

"Well, it's too early. Maybe a bit of anesthetic?" An oily voice came from my right. I perked up in recognition.

_Watanabe-?_

A sharp blow to the head sent me back to oblivion.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: ? Wind: ? Thunder: ? Light: ? Darkness: ?

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

?

?

?

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Yay, action chapter! I love those so much more than flashbacks and other touchy-feely moments. And also, cliffhangers are highly underrated...<p>

I also found a few typos in the last chapter. Oops…. But all fixed and all fine!

BLACK FLAME09: I'm thinking about doing something different, but something to that effect would happen. Pulling an Akihiko/ Shinjiro seems a bit redundant since the story isn't from the perspective of a Wild Card, and if Social Links make an appearance it would only be implied at best. But if you have a specific plot point in mind connected to this, PM me! I'd love to hear it, and maybe incorporate it into the story!

Well, until next time, and thanks for reading! Please review!


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

_'Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p><em>I sat on the porch of our backyard, face in my hands. Sobs wracked my weak frame as the mid-autumn breeze swept against me. Footsteps sounded up behind me. I turned and looked at the concerned face of Mom. <em>

_ "What's wrong, honey? Somebody bullied you again?"_

_ I nodded my head. "To-today Brad s-said mean th-things to me. And t-then he took m-my l-lunch and h-hit me in the f-face!" I managed to choke out between sobs. "I-it's not f-fair….."_

_ A brief flash of emotion – Anger? Sadness? – flashed across Mom's face. Then she resumed her caring smile and asked gently but firmly:_

_ "What did Brad say, my dear? I know my little Gevauden wouldn't be fazed by just names."_

_ "N-no. S-stick and stones may break my bones, but w-words can n-never hurt…" I recited to myself the little dogma. "B-but Brad s-said that I….. I d-don't have a D-dad! That D-dad doesn't l-like me!"_

_ For a second, Mom seemed stricken. I quickly caught on: "Is it t-true then? D-dad doesn't really like me?"_

_ "No, no of course not. You see him every year right?" Mum kneeled down in front of me, leveling her face with mine, and placed her hands on my shoulders. "He just has to work. The Kirijo Corporation in Japan is really demanding of him."_

_ "K-kirijo? Who is that? W-why would daddy want to spend more time with them than us?"_

_ "Daddy does it because we need money to stay here. He does it because he loves us." Mom pulled me into a warm embrace. "I promise….."_

I woke with a start. That was… an old memory. So long ago that it felt like almost a lifetime since it happened…. But that doesn't seem like the most important thing right now, right?

Shifting my weight around, I found myself strapped onto a dental chair of sorts with a full-body straitjacket binding me down. More recent memories came flashing back. Getting drunk at the bar. The fight against the Shadows. Knocking Watanabe out just so he'll shut up-

_Ah, yes. Watanabe._

I looked up and around. I was in some sort of lab, and a lot of those machines surrounding me doesn't look pleasant at all. A chill went down my spine as I examined one of them with a particularly long needle.

_I really don't want to know where they're gonna stick that…. Dammit, I need out!_

I looked around frantically, panic rising, and called out to nowhere:

"Yo, Watanabe? Listen up, bro, if you're still mad at me kicking you, I'm sorry okay? The Dark Hour ain't a place for normal folks like you, so I just assumed that you'd be better off forgetting 'bout the whole thing, you know?"

Silence.

"And about the cash, you can get it back if you want. Hell, I can even let you kick me the face if that makes you happy… You know, why don't we settle this like civilized gentlemen and talk it out? You know, over a cup of Earl Gray or something? Then you can tie me up, knock me out, and dump me somewhere where I could wake up and get home. It'll be our little secret, I swear!"

Silence again.

_'Well that was an epic fail.' _

_ 'Shut your mouth Chicot. I don't need your lip now.'_

I shifted my weight under the straps of the straitjacket. There is no way in hell I'm gonna break free of those without any external help from Chicot. Looking up, I yelled out again:

"If it is money you want, I've got lots of money. If it is Shadow parts you want, I can hunt you a bunch, no questions asked. Hell, I'll do assassinations, extortions, even kick an adorable puppy for you, as long as you let me walk away from this! Free of charge!" I was practically shaking by the time I was done.

This time around, a slick oily voice rang out:

"My, my, my, what happened to the tough guy act?" Watanabe stepped out from the gloom and smiled at me like a spider eyeing its tangled up prey. "But no, we have no need for money, and Shadow research is already out of fashion, so to speak. What we want is something that only you can provide. You rudely interrupted me when I did my introduction the first time, so let's start out at top again.

"My name is Baiko Watanabe, head of the Tokyo branch of the Prometheus project, formerly funded by the Kirijo Corporation. After a certain incident 3 years ago, the funding for the project was…. Discontinued." Watanabe raised his right hand in a grandiose flourish, "That's where I came in. I provided funding for this massive operation and thus have been granted this position as head of the Tokyo Branch!

"But I digress. Now, for our purpose and goals. Are you familiar with the Greek myth of Prometheus? The titan Prometheus stole fire from the Gods, and granted it to humans to protect them from the cold, the natural elements, and to dispel the _shadows_." Watanabe paused, eyes spelling delight as the hidden message sank in. I felt my face fall slack in stark awe, horror, and despair as what he was implying fell into piece in my mind.

_'This…. This is….. what in the world….'_ Chicot was, for the first time in both our lives, shocked speechless at the gravity of the situation.

"Hahahahahahaha! I see you understand now!" Watanabe laughed maniacally at my expression, "We are Prometheus, and we will take the holy fire that protects humans against Shadows from you, a Persona-user, one of the gods among men! And this holy fire is the power of Persona! We shall isolate your Persona and drag it out, to bequeath among others we find more…. worthy, of such honor."

_'I-is that even possible?' _Chicot stammered.

_ 'I dunno…. Heck this is bad... really bad… Why did I even decide to save him?'_

Two men in white lab coats converged upon me, strapping a thick leather belt on my forehead to hold it in place. While they attached multiple sticky pads around my scalp and on my torso, Watanabe continued his monologue in a more normal voice.

"It's been a while since we managed to find a Persona-user that wasn't already found by the Shadow Operatives. Your kind is really hard to find…. Especially since us normal people cannot freely move around during the Dark Hour. An artificial potential can easily be created, but without Persona or transmogrification, we are basically Shadow food.

"Artificial Personas and various other means of combating Shadows have been developed, but none of them are within our power to duplicate with our relatively meager funding compared to what Kirijo supplied." Watanabe paused, leering at me, "So you can imagine that I was quite pleased when I found you. You have saved me in more ways than one!"

"Why? Didn't I save your life, Watanabe? Jumped in front of you when you were about to become Shadow chow?"

Bowing down so that his face was level with mine, Watanabe replied smugly:

"Yes, you did save my life, and now I will try to preserve yours for a while at least. You see those wires attached to you? They monitor your condition, so the separation procedure would not kill you. Your life is quite valuable as long as that Persona is within you." He straightened up and shrugged, "What happens to you afterwards is none of my concern. The procedure would most likely be excruciating…. We are ripping out part of your mind after all. But you will most likely survive it.

"And I must admit, you kicking me in the temple and robbing me blind makes me feel a lot better about doing this to you. So I thank you for that." He cracked a smile at that final statement. I groaned quietly.

'_Yeah… knocking him out and robbing him turned out to be a bad idea….'_

'_Would it had made a difference if you had not?' _Chicot spoke up, trying to disperse my fear through banter. His own dread ruined the effect.

'_I guess not. But it'll feel less like I deserve this if I didn't.'_

'_Don't say that. Nobody deserves this, not even the worse serial killer.'_

'_Thanks …. Chicot?'_

'_Yeah?'_

'_When you leave me, after I'm dead- No, don't interrupt, you know full well there's a possibility of that actually happening- after I'm dead, avenge me… somehow. Please.'_

'_Don't worry about that…' _Chicot's voice was slightly quivering, _'I would mold whoever inherits me into an exact image of you. You will live on that way…'_

'_Dunno what I should think of that… Is that even possible?'_

'_Hey, a Persona can dream, right? If I fail in that, I could always just drive the dude insane. They think of me as just a skill or a tool. I'll probably drive 10 of their 'more worthy ones' insane before they even suspect anything' _Chicot gave a quivering chuckle, and I eventually joined in.

During our farewells, the lab coats have finished wiring all the machinery onto me. Ignoring my chuckles, Watanabe stepped behind a machine and turned a dial. Suddenly an eerie silence fell upon us, along with a familiar greenish hue that covered everything. Darting my eyes around, I noticed that the water in the water machine had turned a familiar shade of scarlet.

_Wait… what…? They managed to recreate the Dark Hour?_

Looking at my bewildered face smugly, Watanabe gloated: "Yes, this is an artificial Dark Hour simulator. Of course, all the scientists you see here have been trained to remain human during the Dark Hour. The only one lacking in those abilities was me, but since I got dragged out of my coffin in the Shadow attack, now the Dark Hour is mine as well! But I digress. Shall we start the procedure then?"

He looked inquiringly at one of the lab coats, who gave a curt nod. Snapping straight as if snapping into attention, Watanabe raised a hand formally, as a General would to signal his troops to charge.

When the hand fell, my screams echoed the room.

I felt myself jerk up as my eyes snapped wide open, pupils threatening to pop out. Something was tearing through my head violently, rummaging for Chicot. It could be compared to using an evoker, but if the evoker shot spiritual bullets, then what I'm experiencing would be comparable to taking a nuclear warhead to the face.

Chicot tried to evade the force rummaging through my head, but alas, my mind had only so much space, and he was found. An ethereal version of Chicot began to slowly form above my body. Blood streaked down from his eyes as if he was weeping, and his mouth was open wide in a loud shrill screech. Our screams mingled, forming a loud cacophony ringing through the room. My linkage with him only proved to worsen things, since we can both feel each other's pain. But as he solidifies, I could feel his pain less and less.

_Please…. Somebody…. Anybody…. Just end this!_

And it did end, although not the way Watanabe had predicted. The noise was gone, and so was the pain. I felt Chicot snap back into my mind, out linkage pulling him back in like a rubber band that had been stretched thin. I crumbled into a panting, sobbing heap. In the background, I heard Watanabe shouting at someone about how close they were, and a more subdued voice responding something about me dying before my Persona was isolated would cause the Persona to just disappear.

I could feel Chicot within me still, but like me, he was extremely weakened by the ordeal and remained silent. Neither of us spoke, yet we both felt the mood. For a brief moment, we were almost separated permanently. It was true, we both knew it. And we are both afraid.

I clenched my fists and eyelids together, trying to stifle the sobs coming from my throat and the tears streaming from my eyes. But they just won't stop. They never did before, once they decided to start.

_I'm sorry Annie, I guess I couldn't stop those tears..._

* * *

><p><em> The bell rang and the whole second year class rushed out of the classroom. I ran out the front and waited for her, and she appeared, golden locks bouncing.<em>

_ "Hey Annie, what should we play today?"_

_ "Oh! I know I know, we can play Code Lyoko! I'll be Yumi!"_

_ "Then I'll be Ulrich!"_

_ Excitedly planning out our makeshift adventures, I ran to the playground with Annie, picking up a stick in the process which I excitedly swung around, pretending that it is a katana. Annie tied a bundle of leaves together and held it as a fan. The two of us jumped around, pretending that the various rocks and bushes were monsters that we would try to de-virtualize. Then we fell into a laughing fit when Annie's makeshift fan hit the rock and scattered into a million pieces._

_ Settling down on a bench, we rummaged through our knapsacks for our lunches. I eagerly pulled out the paper bag which held my hot dog and milk, feeling hungry from all the running around and swinging the stick._

_ I took a total of one bite before a scathing voice came up:_

_ "Well, well, well, if it isn't the little bastard his girlfriend!" Brad, a third year with dark brown hair walked up to him. I stood up, shaking in rage._

_ "You shut your mouth! She's not my girlfriend, and I am not a bastard!"_

_ "Well where's your father? I have a father that tells me stories every night, and tucks me to bed. What about you? Ohhhh, he must not love you, right! In fact, I think he hates you! I would hate you!" Brad's smile got increasingly nasty as he twisted each word in. _

_ "That's not true! Mom told me that he just has to work in T… Tokyo! He loves me and Mom!"_

_ "Your Mom lied." Brad deadpanned right before swinging his right hand into my face. My head snapped back and I felt the hot dog being grabbed from my hands. Another kick followed to my stomach, and I fell back, tripping over the bench and crashing to the ground. I saw Annie stand up but Brad merely gave her a hard shove and she fell back onto the bench._

_Brad took a bite out of my hot dog and leered at me. "Your mum lied, you've got no real dad, and nobody wants you around. Get lost." With that, he spun on his heels and strutted away, while I lay on the floor, feeling the tears in my eyes._

"_Caius?"_

_I stifled a half-formed sob, and looked up at where Annie was still sitting. She was holding out half her peanut butter and jelly sandwich to me, a small sad smile on her face._

"_I still want you around. You're my best friend. So don't cry. It makes me sad if you cry."_

_I smiled at that, and reached out for the offered sandwich while sitting up._

"_Th-thank you Annie… And I won't cry..."_

My eyes snapped open, bringing me back to the present. Watanabe was standing next to the table, smile on his face.

"Well my friend, a bit of fine tuning needs to be done. Apparently we can't let you die before the Persona isolation is complete, so we might just have to redo this multiple times until we obtain the optimal settings."

His smile widened. I groaned. Chicot remained silent.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: ? Wind: ? Thunder: ? Light: ? Darkness: ?

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

?

?

?

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Flashbacks and torture! Fun stuff indeed….. I feel bad for putting Caius through all that, but what doesn't kill you makes you <em><strong>stranger<strong>_, right? RIGHT?

Thanks for the **constructive criticism** I've seen in the **civilized **reviews, and for those of you who like to post flames, could you please at least read the whole thing before you burn me? The way some people post flames on the first chapter with a guest account…. I don't know who they're trying to insult, me or themselves….

Anyway, thanks for reading, and please review!


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

Warning: Lots of human death in this chapter.

* * *

><p>I screamed, arching my body upwards in agony, my human screams mixing with Chicot's monstrous screeching.<p>

_I sat on the bench, head bowed and eyes closed, Annie's presence at my side providing reassurance. Taking another bite at my hot dog, I ignored Brad's ranting with all my might. His words hurt, like always, but I was doing my best to ignore him._

_ "Nobody wants you, nobody needs you, you bastard! Even your own daddy doesn't like you. He hates you and your mommy! You hear me?" Getting increasingly irate, he runs forward and grabs me by the collar, lifting me up to face him. "Your daddy hates you and your mommy! HE HATES YOU!" Ignoring his increasingly angry statements, I closed my eyes and turned my face to a side. _

"_There they are! Let's hurry Ms. Gould!" Annie has run off to get a teacher once Brad grabbed me, and I hear her voice drawing near, accompanied with the concerned voice of a teacher. Brat's head snapped over._

"_Tch. Loser." Throwing that last feeble insult at me, Brad shoved me so I tripped backwards over the bench and fell over. Immediately after that, he bolted, with Ms. Gould on his heels. Annie stopped by my side. I looked up at her and cracked a small smile._

"_I didn't cry."_

"_No, you didn't." Annie offered a hand and helped me up. _

The surge of energy flowed through me once more, seeking to rip Chicot out of my head. He just lets himself get pulled out now, for what is the purpose in resisting anymore? Our screams mingled in the hue of the artificial Dark Hour until the Lab Coats see fit to grant us respite.

_I waved goodbye to Annie at my front door. Slightly skipping, I bounced in front of Mom, wide smile on my face. _

"_Mommy! Mommy, Mommy, Mommy, Mommy….."_

_Slightly shaking her head so that the golden locks won't obscure her face, she looked up at me, smiling at my little chant. She seemed a bit reserved, for some reason, but that was unnoticed by the younger me. _

"_What is it, honey?"_

"_I ignored Brad today! And Ms. Gould finally caught him! He got detention!"_

_Mom clucked her tongue in slight disapproval, but the amusement coming from her eyes gave away her actual thoughts, "Caius, you should never take delight in another's suffering. But still, I'm glad that the problem with Brad is over. Annie helped you, right?" _

"_Yes!" _

"_Well, did you thank her?"_

"_Yes, of course!"_

"_That's good, you have a lot to thank her for…" Mom suddenly looked off into the distance, seemingly deep in thought. "Caius… I have something to tell you… We would be moving to Japan after the summer vacation."_

"_Huh?" The news was so sudden that I paused._

_Sensing my unease, Mom walked towards me and embraced me, whispering into my ear: "Daddy has had a promotion in his company, and he will need to stay in Japan more often. You want to see Daddy more right? We'll be living with Daddy in this nice city named Tatsumi Port Island. You'll make a lot of friends, I'm sure of it…." Her comforting words ran over me, but did nothing to dispel the one thought on my mind at that moment:_

_I have to say goodbye to Annie._

Has it been days, months, or years since I've been imprisoned in this place? Prometheus, at least, had an idea of how much time has passed since the eagle only at his liver once a day. But in my case, only the Lab Coats know how much time there is between each separate "session". It suddenly occurred to me that I was comparing myself to Prometheus while being tortured in the hand of Project Prometheus. It might have drawn out a snicker before, but I'm just too tired now….

_I stood in front of Annie at our front door. She has come to see me off before our car ride to the airport. I stepped in and hugged her, a gesture she returned._

"_We're still friends, right?" I asked, almost choking up._

"_Yes, no matter how far we are, we're still friends…" Annie answered, her voice similarly muffled._

_I stepped back, and closed my eyes tight to stop the tears. Once I was sure that they won't come out, I forced out a bright smile._

"_I promised that I won't cry, so I won't…. And Mommy said it's good if we part with a bright smile!" I declared to Annie. She dabbed her eyes with her sleeve and forced out a smile at me as well. Despite her sadness, it was a beautiful smile coming out from between her golden bangs. _

"_That's right. We should smile, because we are friends. Goodbye Caius."_

"_Goodbye Annie."_

_I was still waving from the backseat long after she was out of eyesight._

I haven't heard from Chicot in a long time. If not for his presence in the back of my head I would've thought that he was gone. That, and he keeps getting forcibly pulled from my head every now and then. I would be concerned, but I'm not really in the state to be capable of being concerned. I feel the edge gnawing at me. Whether if it's the edge of my life, or the edge of my sanity, I cannot tell…

The Lab Coat threw the switch. My body tensed up and I screamed, with Chicot soon joining in.

* * *

><p>"Wake up, Caius." A vaguely familiar, sing-song voice commanded.I grumbled unwillingly. <em>Just let me rest… I think I earned it.<em>

"Get up, Caius. You need to get up." The same voice commanded, firmer this time. I turned to my side and tried to block the voice out.

"If you don't get up now I won't play with you…" The voice teased. _Who in the world uses that threat anymore?_ Intrigued, I cracked an eye open to look at whoever was talking. Annie's face smiled brightly at me, still in her second-grade self and holding out half a peanut butter and jelly sandwich towards me. She bounced a bit impatiently from the bench she was sitting on.

Blinking, I looked at myself and around. I was still bound tight by the leather straps and straitjacket, and was lying flat on my back as if I just tripped backwards on the bench. All around us the playground was enclosed in a thick fog, with the silhouettes of trees and swings in the background. A light, impatient cough brought my attention back to the small girl sitting in front of me.

"C'mon Caius, don't you think you've laid down long enough already? Just get up and play! You've always gotten up after Brad pushed you down, right?" Annie whined, while still holding out the sandwich. I chuckled softly at the naivety of her thoughts.

"Sorry Annie, but I doubt what Brad did could compare with what these guys are doing. I'm tired, so tired. Perhaps I just need to rest…" I turned my head away from her, ready to shut my eyes again.

"But you can't give up! You just have to stand up to them Caius! For Chicot!" My eyes jerked wide open at her mentioning Chicot's name. I slowly turned my face towards her.

"How did you know about Chicot?" Annie cheerfully pointed at somewhere behind me. Twisting around, I saw a familiar silhouette. It wore the unmistakable motley, held a giant cross in one hand, and a mask in the other. It was Chicot, but his back was turned. He was shambling like a zombie, slowly away from me, slowly further into the fog.

"He's really sad you know. And he's growing more distant. If you don't do something, he might leave you. Like you did to me." Annie remarked sadly. Noticing my pained expression, she quickly added: "Not that I'm blaming you for that! It was nobody's fault, in that age neither of us could have done anything about it. But now it's different right? You're all grown up now, so you could do something about it, right?"

I looked hopelessly at Chicot's fading silhouette. "How? I've tried, but I can't break free of these bonds, and I can't summon Chicot without my evoker. As of now, I'm pretty much helpless…"

Fixing me with a firm gaze, Annie gestured behind her back. "That's why you have other friends you can learn from. They're a bit distant now, but you were always carrying them around with you. See? They're right there."

Craning my neck, I looked forwards to where Annie was gesturing, and saw more silhouettes from the fog. As they slowly came into focus, I made out four figures. Three of them were together under a tree. The middle one was standing up, stretching out his limbs and occasionally fiddling with the revolver on his waist, while the other two sat, one typing furiously into a laptop, and the other absentmindedly sketching. A lump raised up in my throat.

_Strega…._

Turning my attention to the last silhouette, I found it walking around aimlessly on the playground, twirling a gun in his hand. He was dressed in a casual formal attire, with the most distinguishing part being the red tie around his neck. I squinted, trying to see him better. At that moment he turned and grinned in my direction.

_Adachi….._

"That's your other friends, right? The ones you made after we said goodbye?" Annie asked. It was all I could do to nod silently. "Well there's got to be one of them who can help you right? That's what friends do."

"But… but most of them are dead…. Or worse…" I whispered quietly. Annie giggled slightly.

"Being dead shouldn't stop you from being friends! You see, I'm supposed to be half the world away from you, but I'm still helping you!" Annie turned around and gave a glance towards the other silhouettes, "Even if they're unable to talk to you directly, they can still help! Think, Caius, which friend would help you to save Chicot now?"

By now all the shadows of my past friends have stopped what they were originally doing and were looking in my direction with expressions of care and concern. Everyone except Takaya, who was looking at me with a small grin. It was as if he was taunting me to do better, taunting me to provide and answer to my own problems.

_Stupid, haughty, Takaya_. _Just looking at that smug face of yours makes me want to do better just so I can flaunt my victory in your face. Huh, I guess that was why you led our ragtag group… Because you could always pull out the best of us by hook or crook…._

Grinning a bit myself, I slowly sat up to face Annie. She was still holding out that sandwich towards me. Leaning forward, I took a large bite from it. Annie beamed.

The sandwich tasted just as good as it did twelve years ago…

* * *

><p>I opened my eyes. The Lab Coats were scurrying around, tweaking various pieces of equipment and adjusting the wires and needles stuck in me. If that was any indication, they were going to perform the procedure again. But there was a certain tension in the air as the Lab Coats spoke with each other in tense, hushed voices. I caught snippets of "Kirijo", "Shadow Operatives", and "last chance", but didn't catch enough to make sense of anything.<p>

But that wasn't any of my concern. I closed my eyes and reached out to Chiciot.

'_Chicot….. Chicot….."_ he wasn't responding, and I don't blame him. Our link has been stretched to its limit during our ordeal, and so have our bond. We are both scared of what might come, but now is the time to act. He just doesn't know it yet.

'_Chicot, how long has it been since you've tasted human death?' _He stirred a bit. I continued on, _'It's been a long time hasn't it? Ever since our last contract together with Strega…'_

Chicot shifted more. He was intrigued, I can tell.

'_You want to kill all these Lab Coats and Watanabe right? So do I, and I have an idea that might actually work. If it works we'll be bathing in their blood. So are you in?' _By now, Chicot was listening intently. His excitement was barely concealable.

'_I'm in, but how? How?'_

'_Remember Takaya and Hypnos?' _Chicot understood immediately.

'_Would it work?'_

'_Let's try it out.'_

Taking a deep breath, I focused inwards and concentrated my energy in my mind. Chicot was doing the same, inching his way around my head. As I pushed, I felt a growing pain in my head, like a migraine. Gritting my teeth, I pushed ahead, with Chicot doing the same.

Then I head the familiar sound of a switch being flicked, and the surge of energy raged its way through my head again. Only this time around, Chicot was working in that direction already and willingly allowed himself to be pulled out of the top of my head. My body spasmed, and I barely held back a scream.

Chicot spun around and slashed at me with a hand, ripping off the leather straps holding me on the bed. I fell off the bed, ripping off all the pins and needles stabbed into me. The pain subsided as I became disconnected from all the machinery surrounding me. Rolling onto my stomach, I shifted to a kneeling position. I shifted my arms and legs, still bound by the straitjacket, and lifted my face to greet the horrified gazes of the Lab Coats with a wide maniacal grin.

'_Didn't quite go as I planned, but all's well that ends well.'_

'_Less talking, more killing.' _Chicot haven't materialized in quite a while and is practically itching for action. Having his tormentors as his targets only made him more eager, and for once I was ready of indulge him.

"Chicot, **Evil Smile**."

Chicot's grin grew even wider as smoky purple tendrils snaked out from behind him and surged towards the Lab Coats. Their reaction was profound, with a few of them collapsing, wide-eyed and whimpering, a few others clutching their heads and screaming, and a few more simply standing there and started foaming around the mouth. I kneeled where I was, a tranquil smile on my face while I beheld the spectacle in front of me. I was vaguely aware that before the torture I would have found this sight distasteful.

'_Imprisonment and torture sure does change a man.'_ I remarked matter-of-factly to Chicot.

'_That it does.'_ Chicot's voice was almost smug. I waited until I've bored of the cacophony of fear, and gave the follow up command.

"Put them out of their misery Chicot. **Ghastly Wail**. And kindly untie me after you're done."

Chicot threw his head back and unleashed a loud, piercing scream. As I heard the sound, it felt as though a slight chill has sliced several times through me. It seemed the same for the Lab Coats, only a lot more literal. The room was silent and the floor was soaking wet by the time it was over. Turning around, Chicot slashed at the bindings that held my arm in place before dematerializing. I fell forward and cushioned my fall with my arms. While waiting for blood to flow again within my arms, I observed with interest the scarlet liquid pooling on the floor slowly stain my white straitjacket.

Finally able to feel my arms again, I hoisted myself into sitting position and untied my legs, stretching them out to get the blood flowing again. Standing up and looking around, I noticed a bit of movement out of the corner of my eye. Apparently one of the Lab Coats were spared the Fear effects, but judging by his quivering shape tucked under a desk, he's pretty much at his limit on how afraid he can be.

Strolling over to him, I grabbed him by the collars and grinned cheerfully into his terrified face.

"Answer me three questions, or else I'm going to show you what I showed your colleagues, are we clear?" He nodded. "One, where is all my stuff? Two, how powerful is that Dark Hour simulator? Three, where is Watanabe?"

"W-Watanabe is in h-his office on the t-top floor. I-it's the only room on t-that floor. The s-simulator i-is covering the w-whole building, W-Watanbe's special orders for 'g-guests'. I w-will bring you your b-belongings." The Lab Coat was almost wetting himself under my gaze. I let go of his collar and gestured for him to lead the way.

'_He mentioned 'guests'. Who are these 'guests'?'_ Chicot asked me.

'_Ask Watanabe. But if he needs the Dark Hour for this, it would most likely be the rest of Project Prometheus. So perhaps we can get them all in one fell swoop.' _My grin widened, and Chicot cackled in the back of my head.

The Lab Coat scurried towards the back of the lab and returned with a bundle of objects. Taking it from them, I found my Lupara, all my normal and customized shells, my evoker with its holster, and my Barbaric Bracers. Strapping everything on, I loaded two shells into my gun and tested out my evoker.

Chicot briefly materialized, crackling before he disappeared again. I frowned slightly.

'_That's weird. It doesn't hurt as much anymore.'_

'_Summoning me? Of course it won't. Compared to the crap we've been pulled through, I'd be surprised you still felt that little sting from the evoker.'_

Nodding my head in agreement, I pointed my gun at the Lab Coat and pulled the trigger. Turning away from the mess I made, I walked towards the elevator.

_Watanabe…. When I get my hands on you, you would wish that you had died at the hands of those Shadows…._

* * *

><p>As I rode the elevator (which thankfully still operated) up to the top floor, I felt slight tremors through the ground. Chicot shifted in my mind.<p>

'_I feel other Personas. Many of them, and they're fighting something.'_

'_Other Personas? Are you sure? You're no Medea….'_

'_I'm not. But that's what it feels like. Call it intuition if you will.'_

'_Hmmm….'_

Pondering Chicot's words, the elevator doors opened. Several coffins stand upright in the hallway, with a big door on the end. The nameplate read "Watanabe". All thoughts of other Personas were wiped from my mind as I saw these words. A red haze covered my vision as I approached the door. Lifting a foot, I kicked the doors open.

The first thing that I saw was a huge desk facing the door. Behind the desk was a chair facing away from the desk, the tip of a head peeking out from the top of the chair back. The doors closed behind me, and Watanabe's oily voice came out from behind the chair:

"Welcome, Kirijo. I must admit, although I did expect you to defeat my Shadow Guards, I never did expect you to get here so fast. I applaud the might of your Shadow Operatives."

_He thinks that I'm someone else! He never even accounted for the possibility that I would escape! _I was so shocked that I didn't even bother to correct him. Watanabe just continued his speech.

"I'm afraid you're a bit too late for the captured Persona user. He should either be separated from his Persona or dead by now. My personal orders. But still, I'm a bit too valuable for you to kill, yes? So I surrender unconditionally and turn myself over to your custody. What say you, Kirijo?"

"Snrk…. Heheheheheheh….. hahahahahaha…..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-!" I just couldn't take it anymore, and burst out in insane laughter. The last laugh came out as a wheeze as I ran out of breath, but I kept shaking with laughter, holding my sides as I gasped for air.

I heard Watanabe do a double-take, then his chair swiveling around. Lifting my head, I savored his expression of terror.

"Remember me, Watanabe?"

"B-but…. You…. You should be dead!" Watanabe managed to splutter out.

"And I'm back. I'm bored with your voice. Let's just end this." Whipping out the evoker, I pointed it at my temple and pulled the trigger. "Chicot, **Evil Smile**."

As the smoky tendrils pierced him, Watanabe let out a long, drawn out scream of fear and collapsed. I slowly approached his screaming figure, holstering my evoker and lifting my Lupara.

'_What are you waiting for? Let me follow up!' _Chicot urged in my head.

'_He's mine.'_ With that simple response, I stepped in front of Watanabe. He fell back, trying to push away from me the same way he tried to crawl away from the Shadows the first time I saw him. Déjà vu again, only this time from a different perspective…

Lunging forwards, I jammed the barrel into Watanabe's screaming mouth and pulled down both triggers. The result resembled fireworks.

Wiping the slick liquid from my eyes, I let out a long sigh of satisfaction as I felt Chicot do the same. _Revenge is so, so sweet…._

I heard the door being kicked open from behind me a second time, rudely pulling me back to reality. A strong, female voice rang out:

"Watanabe! In the name of the Shadow Operatives, you are hereby arres-" The speech was abruptly cut short by a sharp gasp.

Slowly turning my head around, I saw a tall, beautiful woman with long, red hair and an air of authority about her. She was wearing a cat suit with a fur coat draped over. In her right hand she held a long, elegant rapier, while an evoker hang holstered on her left thigh. Slightly behind her was a short young man wearing a blue cap and pea coat. Clutched in his hands was a revolver, and I can see a bulge on his pea coat implying a shoulder holster with either another gun or an evoker. My bet's on the latter.

Both newcomers were surveying the scene of my carnage with shock and revulsion. I rolled my eyes and turned to face them.

_And so here comes more trouble… Is there any moment of joy they won't intrude upon…?_

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: ? Wind: ? Thunder: ? Light: ? Darkness: ?

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

?

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Long chapter, woohoo! I'm afraid I might be setting standards that I can't keep up with…. But it was oddly satisfying to write Caius going crazy on all his tormentors after the last chapter. And as for the two new arrivals, guess who? You've got three guesses, and the first two don't count…. :D<p>

On a more serious note, many thanks to BLACK FLAME09 for helping me brainstorm Chicot's evolved form (which is going to come wayyyyyyyy later). Thanks a lot! Couldn't have done it without ya!

Like always, please read and review! :)


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>The two newcomers glanced around at the bloody scene around me, and started glaring at me. I lifted a hand in a placating manner.<p>

"Wait a minute, I can explain-" stopping myself midsentence, I glanced around the room. A glass window caught my eye, reflecting my image. I stood in the middle of the room, the loose straps of my straitjacket slightly flowing around me. Spots of crimson stained the white straitjacket, while my slightly crazed eyes stared out of the glass. Behind me, the bloody mass that used to be Watanabe lay on the ground.

_'Hehehe, good luck talking yourself out of this one…'_ Chicot snickered at the back of my mind. I mentally grinned in agreement. Turning to face the two other Persona users, I shrugged nonchalantly while my hand drifted towards my evoker holster.

"You know what? I know I'm not going to talk my way out of this, so why don't we skip the pleasantries and go directly to the part where we try to kill each other?" As soon as I finished my sentence, my hand grabbed the evoker and whipped it up firmly against my chin. My opponents reacted just as fast, with both Red-head and Blue Cap pressing their evokers against their temples just as I'm about to pull the trigger of mine.

"Chicot, **Mabufudyne**!"

"Yamato-Sumeragi, **Heat Riser**!"

"Artemisia, **Bufudyne**!"

The room was illuminated by three summoning auras as the three Personas busted out of their respective owners. Blue Cap's Persona – a thin figure wearing a military uniform with a beak-like helmet, a strangely shaped cape, and flowing golden hair- swung its saber around and pointed its hand towards Red-head, who was engulfed in a stream of light. Red-head's Persona- a masked lady with an iron dress wielding a thorn whip- snapped the whip and sent a blast of icy wind towards me. At the same time, Chicot cackled madly as a giant icy whirlwind emerged from him and swept at the two other Persona-users.

Red-head's bufu spell washed over me with no effect. I grinned to myself, silently thanking Chicot for his ice immunity. Unfortunately, he can hear my thoughts.

_'The cold never bothered me anyway…'_ I shuddered a bit at his comment, goose bumps raising up my arm.

'_Never, ever sing that. EVER. Ugh, the last thing I need is to connect you with Elsa. Ugh…' _

'_Hahaha… Okay, but you should pay attention to the fight.'_

The conversation seemed long, but the actual exchange barely took a second due to us sharing thoughts. Focusing my attention back on the fight, I saw that Blue Cap has been knocked back by the bufu spell, a thick layer of frost forming over his body. No such luck with Red-head though, who apparently absorbed the ice.

'_Tch, ice absorption huh? I guess it's up to you then, Caius.'_

Taking a graceful step forward, Red-head lunged with her rapier. Raising my gun, I barely blocked the strike with the butt of my Lupara. Three more swift stabs followed, with me almost stumbling over myself to parry all of them. After the third parry I managed to swing my gun around and unloaded both buck shots in her direction. Red-head simply did a split and ducked under it, but the shot was enough distraction for me to execute a back-flip away from her, putting a good 2 meters between us.

'_Dam, she's fast! And I have Angelic Grace AND a set of Barbaric Bracers!'_ I was breathing heavily as I eyed my opponent wearily.

'_Caius, she's still on the effects of Blue Cap's Heat Riser! And maybe she's just a lot better than you...'_

'_The first part was enough, thank you very much Chicot. You don't have to rub it in.'_ But I still made a mental note to work out more, since it's pretty obvious that I'm out of shape.

Red-head raised her rapier and lunged once more. Backing up as fast as I could, I grabbed my evoker and shot myself in the gut, due to not having enough time to lift it up to my head.

"**Jester's Privileges**!"

Red-head's eyes widened as Chicot materialized behind me and waved his hands wildly. Feeling my body suddenly become lighter while my opponent slowed down, I stepped to one side, easily evading the lunge. Mentally grumbling about the fact that my gun is empty, I settled for ramming the butt into her face. I watched in grim satisfaction as she tumbled back a good few meters and slammed into a wall.

_*bam* *bam* *bam* *bam*_

Gunshots shook me out of my gloating. Ducking down, I felt one of the shots whizz right past my face. Reaching up to my face, I found that the shot had grazed my cheek. Apparently Blue Cap had recovered from the bufu spell and is now emptying his revolver on me. I quickly rummaged in my belt for round and pulled out two rounds marked with red tape with black edges.

_Which ones were those again? Eh, whatever, no time for that…_

Quickly loading the rounds into the Lupara, I heard the distinct shattering sound of an evoker firing.

"Yamato-Sumeragi, **Agidyne**!"

I quickly dived behind cover as a huge blast of fire swept over the room. Before the inferno has completely subsided, I heard the same voice cry out again:

"**Garudyne**!"

_Ice and Wind skills? What the hell?_ The same time as those thoughts sprung from my mind, I summersaulted over the huge gust of wind that threw Watanabe's office into further disarray. A second evoker firing was heard:

"Artemisia, **Diarahan**!"

Whirling around on my heels, I saw Red-head stand up from where she had fallen, a healing aura gently brushing over her. Firing her evoker again, the healing aura washed over Blue Cap as well. He gave her a grateful glance.

"Thank you Kirijo-san."

"Don't mention it, Shirogane. Focus on the task on hand." Kirijo, the red head, faced me in a balanced fencing stance. I could feel the chilling pressure coming off of her.

'_Tch, a multi-elemental, and a healer who just happens to be immune to your element… This just gets better and better right?'_

'_Hey, I evolved for Shadow fighting. It's been a long time since I had to fight a fellow Persona.'_

'_That's no help Chicot…'_

While we were bickering, Kirijo pointed her rapier at me and summoned her Persona once more:

"**Ice Break.**" Suddenly I felt a lot more aware of the chill within the room. My ice immunity was gone.

_ 'Well shit. Looks like holding back isn't an option.'_

_ 'Let's face it Caius, you were pretty much scrambling around just to survive so far.'_

_ 'Shut up Chicot.'_

Swiftly pulling out my evoker, I pointed it to my face. Before I could pull the trigger, Shirogane raised his revolver and started decking rounds out at my face. Back flipping out of harm's way, I heard Red-head command her Persona once more.

"**Mind Charge**."

I could feel energy gathering around Red-head. This is not good. Ducking behind something that might've once been a desk, I pointed the barrel of the evoker at my chin and pulled the trigger.

"**Evil Smile**…."

Chicot sprang out and unleashed countless smoky tendrils at the two other Persona-users. Kirijo, being focused on charging up, got hit with a tendril. Immediately her shoulders sagged and she almost collapsed, catching herself at the last moment and barely holding herself up. Shirogane ducked and weaved for a bit, but eventually got hit by one tendril, also collapsing halfway. I got out of my hiding place, and rested the muzzle of my evoker on my temple.

"I'm impressed. Most people who got hit by that would've collapsed and become almost comatose until the effects wore off. But then again, most people aren't Persona users." I shrugged slightly and winked at them, my finger tightening on the trigger, "Nothing personal, but I really can't risk you guys coming after me if I leave you like this. Chicot, **Ghastly Wail**."

"A-an act of self-defense! **Shield of Justice**!" Somehow Shirogane managed to press his evoker against his stomach and pull the trigger, issuing his commands through chattering teeth. At a wave of the Persona's hand, ethereal riot shields dropped down from nowhere in front of both Persona-users and blocked Ghastly Wail's invisible slashes. I could only blink dumbly at the display.

_Can such a skill even exist?!_

By this time, Kirijo has managed to raise her evoker to her head and pull the trigger.

"**Nifheim**!" A huge pillar of ice slammed into me and sent me flying across the room. My back slammed against the glass wall, knocking the wind out of me, and leaving deep cracks on the bullet-proof glass. Crumpling on the floor, I coughed out a mouthful of blood, blindly lifted my Lupara and pulled both triggers.

**Maragion Gem**. Times two. Shielding my eyes as the blazing inferno shot out from my gun barrel and filled the room in front of me, I heard two shrieks. Opening my eyes again, I saw Kirijo crouching, breathing heavily while Shirogane stood in front of her, evoker pointed at his temple and revolver pointed at me. I could still see the effects of Fear in both of them.

"**Mamudoon**!" Dark runes surrounded me and closed in. Smiling lazily, blood trickling down the corner of my mouth, I raised my evoker and summoned Chicot, casting **Ghastly Wail** once more and allowing the darkness spell to pass though harmlessly.

For Shirogane, however, things weren't as easy. Hastily pulling the trigger again, he summoned the riot shields again to block the invisible slashes. I reloaded my Lupara, this time choosing shells marked with golden tape. Shirogane eyed me warily as I slowly struggled back to my feet, his shoulders lifted and fell with his heavy breathing. I could see it in his eyes. Exhaustion. It seems that the "Shield of Justice" that he keeps using is quite taxing. Everything has a breaking point, and he's nearing his.

As I pointed the evoker to my temple again, ready to finish it, a stream of liquid flew into the air from somewhere behind Shirogane, falling and completely drenching him. Both of us looked behind him in bewilderment, and saw Kirijo on her feet, panting, with an empty bottle of Amrita Soda clutched in her left hand. I noticed that no trace of Fear was in her, and the same with Shirogane.

"I am in you debt again Kirijo-san…" Shirogane muttered, still trying to catch her breath. Kirijo gave a small smile- she can actually smile?!- and stepped in front of Shirogane, taking up a fencing stance.

"Take a breather Shirogane. I'm in your debt as well."

_'She must've drank half the bottle and flung the rest onto Shirogane! Shit, this is bad…'_ Chicot was blissfully silent while I ranted. He seems to understand that I really can't afford to be distracted now.

Pulling down the trigger to the evoker, I focused my energy on Shirogane and summoned Chicot once more.

"**Bufudyne**!"

Without paying any attention to whether the spell hit or not, I turned my attention to Kirijo, who similarly had her evoker out and at her temple.

"**Jester's Privileges**!"

"**Nifheim**!"

Just as Chicot boosted me up, the massive ice pillar also surged towards me. Holding my Lupara in front of me horizontally, I braced for impact.

The ice pillar crashed into me, but shattered into a thousand pieces. The damage it did was comparable to whacking an elephant with a couple of marshmallows. I blinked for a second before I understood what had just happened.

_ 'It seems like the ice immunity is back on.' _Chicot almost cheered.

_'So you do care about me. I'm touched…'_

Brushing away the leftover ice shards that were obscuring my sight, I barely managed to bring my Lupara up fast enough to parry Kirijo's lunge. She quickly followed up with three more strikes, but without the element of surprise and hindered by Jester's Privileges, None of her blows managed to make contact. Stepping into range, I swung the Lupara down and rammed the stock down on the top of her head. I then followed up with a round kick to her leg. Kirijo dropped down on one knee as one of her legs gave way, numb from my kick. Grinning manically, I stepped in for the kill.

"**Agidyne**!" Shirogane was on his feet, breathing heavily and slumped against a wall for support. A thick layer of frost on his pea-coat indicated that my earlier bufu spell has found its mark.

I felt the heat of fire before my body was yanked back involuntarily, doing a backflip away from the blast of fire. It must have been Chicot. Knowing that by itself my body was past its limit, I relaxed all my muscles and allowed Angelic Grace to take over, ducking and side-stepping around two more Agidyne spells. As I dodged the second spell, I landed heavily on my feet, and collapsed as a jolt of pain shot through my ribs. I half knelt on the floor, coughing up blood.

_Dam… must've broken a rib or two when I got slammed into a wall by Nifheim…._

As I crouched, retching blood and cursing my fate, golden runes suddenly raise from the floor and trapped me in their midst. Looking up through the runes, I saw Shirogane smirking at me, his Persona fading back into the sea of souls.

"You smug little son of a-" My sentence was cut short by the Hamon spell taking effect. I grit my teeth as the spell burned its course through me. A wave of fatigue washed over me as the spell dissipated, but I propped myself up with one hand.

"**Survive Light**." I hissed between my teeth. Shirogane was no longer smirking, a worried expression entering his face. Lifting my Lupara so that the barrels pointed towards the ceiling, I unloaded both barrels at once.

**Megido Gem**. Times two again. I saw both Kirijo and Shirogane's panicked face lighted up by the gathering almighty energy. It seems that they are pretty much on the end of their line as well. Two Megidos should finish the job. Unable to hold myself in, I started laughing.

"Snrk…. Heheheheheheh….. hahahahahaha…..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-!" A spike of pain cut through my last laugh as my ribs flared up painfully, forcing me to double over in pain. As I gasped for breath, specks of blood flying from my lips, I saw Shirogane stand up with a firm look in his eyes. His summoning aura blended in nicely with the light of almighty energy.

"Justice is mine! **Shield of Justice**!"

_What!?_

Once again, ethereal riot shields dropped from the sky and stood in front of Kirijo and Shiragane right before the blast of energy blinded me. Somewhere within the blinding light, I heard a sharp scream of pain. Once the energy subsided, I saw Kirijo half kneeling just where she was before the blast, blinking in slight confusion. Shirogane, however, lay in a trembling heap, his head in his hands. Persona fatigue. He'll need a few days bed rest before he's fit for action again.

'_One down, one to go…'_ I remarked wearily to Chicot as I struggled to get up.

'_Are you sure you should continue fighting? You can barely stand.'_

'_We're already balls deep in this shit hole. We can't back up now.'_

Finding my footing, I lurched to my feet while fumbling my pockets for more rounds. A sudden bout of vertigo hit me as I stood up, most likely because I stood up too fast. I stumbled back, but the combination of vertigo, prior blood loss, and a potentially broken rib started to catch up on me. As I felt myself lose balance and saw the floor rushing up to meet me, I cursed under my breath.

_What a way to go….._

* * *

><p>I woke up in a bed. Unsurprisingly, my Barbaric Bracers, Lupara, evoker and shotgun rounds are gone. Surprisingly, I wasn't tied down to the bed. Even more surprisingly, I saw Kirijo, dressed in a shirt and dress, and another man- tall and muscular with silver hair, a casual suit and leather gloves- sitting by my bed. Reaching for Chicot, I inquired:<p>

'_Yo. What happened?'_

'_Hell if I know. I was just as out cold as you were.'_

'_Okay…. Well if things get ugly again, would I be able to call on you?'_

'_Doubt it. Only worked last time cos the machine was yanking me out.'_

'_Well crap. I guess I'll just have to try talking my way out of this.'_

'_Couldn't you have done that earlier?'_

'_Well, current circumstances are more favorable for negotiations than being found with a dead body.'_

'_Guess so. And Caius, one thing I need to say to you while we're still linked and living.'_

'_Spit it Chicot.'_

'_I told you so.'_ Chicot teased, referring to the moment when I swatted his concerns aside and tried to keep fighting, only to collapse due to vertigo. I shut him out completely, snorting under my breath.

My snort caught the attention of Kirijo and the man. Stepping forward, Kirijo stood in front of me and, after slightly coughing to get my attention, started speaking:

"My name is Mitsuru Kirijo, current head of the Kirijo Group and the Shadow Operatives. This here" she gestured towards the man, "is my fiancée Akihiko Sanada. He's also a Persona-user and a Shadow Operative. As a group, our objective is to combat any Shadow-related threat, be it natural or artificial. "

Folding her arms, Kirijo looked pointedly at me. "I know we didn't meet on the best of terms, but judging by what our investigations on Watanabe and Project Prometheus reveal, your massacre of all the central figures of the Tokyo branch, though extremely excessive, is not entirely... unreasonable." The edge of her mouth pulled out a bit, showing her distaste at the idea. Akihiko also showed concealed signs of disgust and anger. Clearly we're going to return to that issue later, after I'm done answering the more "urgent" questions. I snorted slightly.

Mitsuru raised an eyebrow at that, but continued talking: "Right now we're a bit more interested in who you are than what you've done. Who are you? Who do you work for? What is your purpose?"

'_Such old-fashioned interrogation techniques…'_ Chicot snarked at the back of my head.

'_Well, we've got nothing to hide…'_

Clearing my throat a bit, I nodded to Mitsuru to indicate that I am ready to talk. Her face betrayed a flash of relief. Makes me wonder what bad interrogation memories she's had before.

_Ah well, none of my business…_

"My purpose…. Well, to put it in the simplest terms possible, my purpose is a complete lack of purpose." Both Mitsuru and Akihiko looked shocked at my statement, and I chuckled at their expressions. "Don't act so surprised. Just because you people have a mission and a purpose, doesn't mean there aren't people like me who dedicate their lives to following their whims. Nothing's wrong with either way of living.

"As for who I am and who I work for… Well, let's just do a full introduction shall we? My name is Caius Gevauden, and I am the last known living member of the Shadow mercenary group named Strega."

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: ? Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>Author's Note: Yes I got my first two followers! Acceptance at last! Anyway, here I am, posting this thing at 2:30 am just for all of you who love this story (there's gotta be more of you out there)! But also because of that, please forgive me if typos happen….<p>

And also, I'm kinda running out of scripted material here, so I might cut down the updates to roughly once a week or so…. But fear not! I have the whole story planned out. I just need fillers. Lots and lots of fillers….

Well, like always, please read and review!


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>As soon as I uttered the word "Strega", the atmosphere suddenly tensed. I saw Mitsuru's eyes widen and she half turned towards Akihiko.<p>

Or, at least she tried to turn to where Akihiko was. Before I knew it, I was half-way lifted off the bed, nose-to-nose with the albino man, his gloved hands grabbing my collar so tight that I'm surprised that the fabric didn't rip.

"Akihiko, calm down!" Mitsuru's voice came from behind Akihiko, but the he ignored her. Instead, he stared at me with the utmost sense of hatred. I could almost hear his teeth grinding down.

"So… you're with the bastards who killed Shinji….?" He spat. I frowned slightly.

_'Chicot, did we ever kill a 'Shinji' in any of our contracts with the rest of Strega?'_

_ 'Beats me. We've never kept a record have we?'_

_ 'Uh-huh… perhaps mentioning Strega wasn't the best idea…'_

_ 'Oh, now you notice?'_

While I was talking with Chicot, Akihiko had lost his patience and lifted me up a bit further, most likely in preparation to slam me into a wall or something. A hand suddenly shot out from the side and grabbed Akihiko's arms. Mitsuru was standing to a side, glaring at Akihiko. Under her cold gaze, the man took a deep breath and loosened his grip on me, allowing me to fall back onto my bed.

Rubbing my neck a bit, I started chuckling to myself. Both of my interrogators shot me a look that was both questioning and threatening. I directed my attention towards Akihiko.

"Dude, you are so whipped…" Chicot cackled, and Akihiko seemed ready to blow up. I raised both hands to signal that I mean no harm.

"Okay, okay, tough guy. No more jokes. But still… I don't really remember a 'Shinji' anywhere… can you give a description or something?"

"How can you not remember Shinj-" The man started angrily, but Mitsuru quickly cut him off with a wave of her hand.

"Tall, pale, red pea-coat with a beanie. Killed by Takaya. Rings a bell?"

"Killed by Takaya?" I chuckled under my breath, "Do you have any idea how little that narrows it down?! Bastard always insisted on having the kill whenever we were on an elimination contract." Ignoring the glare from Akihiko, I put a hand up to my chin, contemplating the question in earnest this time around.

_'Red pea-coat. Tall. Pale. And a beanie. Did we ever kill anyone like that, Chicot?'_

_ 'Umm… no, I don't think so. Tall people? A lot. Beanies? A lot. Pale folks? You yourself pulled the trigger on three of those, not to mention all of those that we couldn't steal from Takaya….'_

_ 'Oh, yeah. He wasn't happy about that, but he knew he couldn't hog all the kills… But the pea-coat is a problem. Who still wears those anyway?'_

_ 'Well, there's Shirogane, whom we just fought. And isn't there this one guy who we didn't kill but supplied the suppressants to?'_

_ 'Oh yeah…..'_

Snapping out of thought, I addressed Mitsuru and Akihiko:

"Well, I don't think we ever killed such a person, at least not when I was still with the rest of them. But I do remember a guy that fits your description. Dude hung around the corner a lot, and bought Persona suppressants from us. Gotta say, as junkies go, he has a weird taste in drugs… Went by the name of Shinjiro Aragaki. Is he this 'Shinji' you were talking about?"

"Yes. He was killed by Strega three years ago." Mitsuru answered as Akihiko turned his back on me.

"Oh… well that explains why I don't remember killing him. Shame, I liked the guy…."

After a moment of uncomfortable silence, Mitsuru asked:

"You said 'at least when I was still with the rest of them.' What does that mean?"

I shrugged. "I branched out from the rest of Strega five years ago. There was a bit of an ideal difference between me and the rest of the group, so I decided to leave for Tokyo. We parted on good terms, and I've just been doing my own thing since then."

"Ideal differences? What do you mean?"

"Nihilism and bloodlust is the simple answer. We were straying away from what Strega started out to be, and while it was all well and fine with the rest of them, I wasn't prepared to expend my whole life in the span of a few years. If you don't mind the long story, I can give you the more complete version of the answer." Mitsuru nodded. I leaned forward and flipped my pillow around so that it was cool on my back.

"You see, Strega started out as a ragtag group of orphans trying to help each other. Three of them have been orphaned for a long time and have been under the care of the Kirijo Group." I grinned at Mitsuru, who shifted uncomfortably, "The last was just an orphan who had discovered the power of Persona. Bonding over the loss of parents and their mysterious powers, the four formed a small gang and named themselves Strega, named after a historical group of users of Pagan magic.

"Anyways, I assume you are familiar with the other members of Strega?" Looking up, I saw Kirijo nod in assent. "So basically, Strega started doing odd jobs to make ends meet. Given that we had access to the 25th hour, it was pretty easy to make a name for ourselves as people who can get shady business done without being caught. Soon, our IT guy Jin had set up our websites and we got all sorts of contracts. Mostly just contracts asking us to steal particular items or intimidate certain people. Occasionally we got an assassination contract, which means a little pay raise. Even more rarely, we get a Shadow extermination contract from somewhere higher up, and that's when the cash started rolling. When we didn't have contracts, we would just hang out in the Dark Hour and hunt for Shadows, claiming whatever parts that we can pawn later. Basically, we were family, and we looked after each other, whether we were in or out of battle."

_'Ah yes, those were the good old' days…'_ Chicot reminisced longingly. I silently nodded in assent. Akihiko still had his back to me, but his head was turned in my direction. Mitsuru looked visibly disturbed.

"Alas, that was not to last. Roughly 7 years ago, we saw the first signs of death in the three other members of Strega. Their bodies would not retain heat, their usage of suppressants peaked, and blood was often mixed in whatever bodily excrements they produced. To maintain their body temperatures, Jin and Chidori resorted to wearing thick layers of clothes at all times, while Takaya stubbornly insisted upon his wardrobe. Or lack of one.

"Soon after that, he discovered the ability to summon Hypnos without the aid of an evoker. Personas arise from a brush with death. An evoker is meant to simulate death and to forcibly pull out one's Persona. For Takaya to be able to summon a Persona without an evoker…. We all know what that meant. He could've literally dropped dead at any second.

"Death is something that should only be brushed against at most. When a man constantly walks in the shadow of death, as Takaya did, it… changes him. Nihilism took possession of Takaya's mind, and he began to accept more and more assassination contracts. Jin and Chidori weren't as badly influenced, but they followed without question, and so did I. It wasn't even that bad for a while…" At this point, Mitsuru and Akihiko were looking disturbed and disgusted. I chuckled and shrugged.

"What? You saw what I did to Watanabe and the scientists, and Mitsuru you personally witnessed me try to kill you and Shirogane. Obviously I have had quite a lot of experience committing homicide." Akihiko's fists clenched at that statement. I smiled and reached for the plastic pitcher of water that was sitting on the bedside table.

_'Oh ye of little faith…'_ cackled Chicot at the back of my head.

_'People hear what they want to hear, and believe what they want to believe. They can't really wrap their head around the fact that the man currently engaged in civilized conversation with them is one and the same as the man who would carve a path of blood through throngs of people.'_

_ 'Oh, you always have a good reason for it…'_

_ 'Does a fat paycheck count as a good reason?'_

_ 'Eh, good enough.'_

Pouring myself a glass of water and downing it, I resumed my tale:

"Killing was… exhilarating, so to speak, so I went along for a bit. But Takaya's bloodlust grew. He started accepting all kinds of assassination contracts, no matter how low the pay or how petty the cause. Before, we'd be lucky if we got one kill in half a year. Now, barely a week went by without a kill. It was always blamed on Apathy Syndrome, but what really happened was we would break the legs of the target, and then leave them far from their coffin during the Dark Hour

"Jin took it a step further and changed our website into a revenge site. For Takaya, killing became almost as vital as the suppressants, and he kept pressing the price of a kill lower and lower. It got to a point where it was slightly disturbing me. We were pretty much killing a man for just a few pennies at that point. Life is fragile, and often cheap, but we were definitely setting a record for the cheapest. And if I'm going to snuff out someone's life, I usually want to be dam sure that I'm getting a hefty paycheck over it.

"So one day, 5 years ago, I just walked up to Takaya and told him that I won't be killing so cheaply anymore. That while the three of them might expect to die early and thus want to enjoy life to the fullest, I still look forward to something resembling a long life. He simply smiled and told me that I could leave if I wanted to. And so I did, bringing with me a quarter of all our earnings. I relocated to Tokyo, found some cheap lodgings, and earned money by pawning whatever loot I can find on local Shadows. It was quite a nice income, and I didn't need to kill anyone since I wasn't accepting contracts from anyone. In fact, I even made a habit of saving the random passerby from Shadow attacks, even if it's just to slam their coffin lids shut again.

"Thus I spent the last 5 years. Then I happened to make the bad decision of saving a man named Watanabe….. Well, you know what happened next." Pouring myself another cup of water, I finished my story with a cheerful grin at my audience, who were both staring at me with mixed expression of sympathy and disgust. I leaned back on my pillow and sighed as I felt the pressure that seemed to surround my soul dissipate a bit. Mitsuru quickly recovered and quickly excused herself and her fiancée.

"Oh, you must be extremely exhausted from your ordeal at the hands of Project Prometheus. I'm sorry for keeping you up for so long. We'll give you some time now. Please rest."

The two Persona-users walked out of my room. I heard the lock click behind them. Turning my head towards the window, I saw metal bars affixed to the window frame. This hospital was made to also act as a prison. Slightly shrugging to myself, I closed my eyes and leaned back.

_'They can detain me if they like. I've got nothing to hide, and there's no way they can actual accuse me in court of murders committed 5 years past.'_

_ 'And plus, didn't most of those people who fell into Apathy Syndrome recover from it? A great amount of our targets must've been among them.'_

_ 'They did?'_

_'Wow Caius, it was all over the newspaper three years ago. That was one crazy year for Tatsumi Port Island…._

'_Oh yeah… Wait, wasn't that also the year when Strega appeared on the newspapers, and the whole world was hit by a bout of amnesia? The one in which only we recovered from?' _

'_I doubt it was simple amnesia, since even physical evidence was wiped out. Perhaps the Shadow Operatives have something to do with it? After all, they seem to have fought Strega before…'_

'_Eh, if it comes up we can ask Mitsuru. After all, I gave her my story. I think that it would be fair that I asked for hers sometime later… _

'_About that, I didn't expect you to tell them the whole story. You never did that, even when you were crap-ass drunk and rambling to Saito.'_

_ 'Let's face it Chicot. I like to talk, but have I ever had a good audience?'_

_ 'Saitou. He would've listened. While you were drunk.'_

_ 'But he wouldn't have understood.'_

_ 'No, he wouldn't. Okay, I get it. Huh, while you might have landed in a butt load of trouble in meantime, I'm glad you met other Persona-users.'_

_ 'If only I didn't have to go though a few days of torture and a death fight against two Persona-users to get here.'_

_ 'True… Now settle down. You need your rest.'_

_ 'Yes, Mom.'_

Pulling my covers up to my chin, I moved a bit to settle comfortably in my bed. Despite my teasing, Chicot is right. I need the rest, and this bed feels really comfortable now…

My consciousness faded….

* * *

><p><em>I strained against my bindings while faceless shadows attached various pins and needles into my temples. Watanabe's oily laugh rang in the background. Turning, I see his giant face affixed as a wall. <em>

_ "I-I killed you! You are nothing but bloody shreds!" I screamed before a bundle of cloth is forcibly stuffed into my mouth. Watanabe's giant face just sneered._

_ "I will always be there, Caius, because your Persona would eventually become mine…. You are not worthy of such power!" Once his sentence ended, I heard a familiar click of a switch. The familiar forced invaded my mind once again, grabbing Chicot and dragging him out by the leg. Desperately trying to stay in my mind, Chicot grabbed onto whatever was around, leaving deep bleeding gouges along the interior of my mind._

_ I arched my back and screamed. Agony, agony like I've never known before. Agony that is both alien and familiar. Watanabe's laugh rang out, and I grit my teeth in hatred while glaring at him with wide eyes._

_ "I… I'll kill you. I'll kill you. I'll kill you I'll kill you I'll kill you I'll kill you I'll kill you I'll kill you kill you kill you kill you kill you kill you…"I started a ghastly chant and faintly noticed as Chicot joined in. We were one, and we wanted blood._

_ "Kill you kill you kill you kill you KILL YOU KILL YOU KILL YOU KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL…!"_

_ The bindings tore off as I struggled. Snatching my Lupara off the table I jumped to my feet and rushed at Watanabe's face with Chicot at my side._

_ "KILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILLKILL….!"_

_ I unloaded both barrels into Watanabe's face while Chicot released an icy blizzard. _

_ "I'LL KILL YOU!"_

_ The bullets and the spell hit simultaneously. Watanabe's face blew apart in a burst of blood and ice, revealing muscle and bone. But it was not dead. Opening its mouth wide, what remained of Watanabe's face lunged towards me and Chicot._

_ "Your Persona is MINE!"_

_ I screamed with horror as the dark maw swallowed me whole._

* * *

><p>I sat straight up screaming. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a vaguely familiar shape dissipating into thin air. Trying to clear my head, I shook it slightly, only to see a much more disturbing sight at the other corner of the room.<p>

Almost half the room was covered in a thick layer of ice. The visiting chair was laying on its side, encased in a thick block of ice. It resembled what happened every time Chicot missed with a bufu spell.

_That's….._

Reaching in, I found Chicot in a stage of confusion and disarray. He was usually a lot more composed than this. But then again, this is hardly usual.

_'Chicot?'_

_ 'Yeah? Spit it.'_

_ 'Well, this might be a stupid question, but did you somehow materialize and cast Bufudyne while I was asleep?'_ It was technically impossible, but I just had to make sure. I waited while Chicot remained silent, each passing second increasing my nervousness. Finally I couldn't stand it.

_'Well, yes or no?'_

_ 'Y-yes. I'm not sure how, but once I woke up, I was already materialized. And I feel the residual ice magic on my hands. But I don't recall ever casting that spell… But there's nobody else…'_

Returning to the physical world, I looked at the disarray of my room and was silently thankful that it wasn't a full Bufudyne spell. If it was, then half the room would be completely filled with a block of ice.

_But still, summoning a Persona and casting a spell during a bad dream? What in the world…_

I recalled the dream, and looked down at my hands. Sighing, I clutched my head in my hands, trying to make sense of the situation. Predictably, I failed.

_What in the world is happening to me?!_

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: ? Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: New Chapter! Shorter than the last two, but oh well…. The next one might take a while. Mostly because I feel like I need a bit of buffer between this and the next serious event (kinda like social links in the actual games, only without the arcana and boost in power), and those take a bit of time…. Any suggestions guys?

As always, please review! Following or favorite wouldn't hurt either….


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>Morning came, and I sat up slowly rubbing my eyes. Looking around, the room looked normal.<p>

_Was yesterday night all a bad dream?_

'_No. Definitely not.' _Chicot spoke up. I felt a nudge in my head towards a corner of the room. Glancing at the direction, I saw a tiny patch of ice sublimating into nothingness.

'_God dammit…'_ I reached back to Chicot. _'Does this mean you're going out of control?'_

'_I don't think so…. I don't feel any more feral than I did before. And while I was talking to Hypnos, Moros, and Medea, they were pretty…. Murderous whenever they were off their meds…'_

'_And you're not?'_

'_No. Not compared to them… The word people use to describe you and I would be 'amoral'. We don't mind a good kill, but we don't actively crave it either. The uncontrolled Personas however….'_

'_Would actively search out people to kill, including their wielders.'_

'_Bingo. So as you can see, I'm far from losing control. Although what happened last night was disturbing, you don't need to start using suppressants…. Yet.'_

'_Yet….'_ I echoed dryly. Images of Takaya crouching in the corner of our shared apartment, coughing up blood while choking down his suppressants came to mind. Similar images of Jin and Chidori followed short. The first time the symptoms emerged was in our early teens. Takaya was downing his pills with a cup of water just like normal when he suddenly doubled over, vomiting blood all over the dining table. He eventually managed to stop the stream of blood long enough to choke down the suppressants, which temporarily stemmed the blood-flow. But the image of Takaya leaning forwards, vomiting blood onto the white tablecloth was forever seared into the minds of the members of Strega.

'_Cheer up.' _Chicot prodded, his voice surprisingly soft. _'You don't need the suppressants. I'm a natural-born Persona, remember? You never went through all that crazy shit that the rest of Strega went through, right? Now now…" _He was almost cooing at this point. I smiled warmly at his comforting tone, then mock shuddered.

'_Ew. Can you gross me out more?'_

'_You just had to ruin it, did you?' _Chicot laughed warmly as he felt my nervous tension dissipate with the joke. Scratching the back of my head, I turned to mybedside table and started picking at the hospital breakfast someone kindly left for me.

* * *

><p>'<em>Tch… I can never get the hands right… how on earth did Chidori do this all the time?!'<em>

'_Have you seen any of that girl's drawings? None of them had hands- or anything vaguely human- in them.'_

'_Not helping Chicot….'_ I frowned as I rubbed the eraser across the sketchpad, rubbing off the poor excuse of a hand which I had just finished drawing 5 seconds ago. There was a time when Chidori gave me a crash course on how to sketch, and I mildly enjoyed it. But it was soon overshadowed by video games and experimenting with custom made shotgun rounds.

However, I hated playing on someone else's console, and I doubt a hospital would have anything related to making custom rounds. So I asked for a pencil and a sketchpad, and started sketching an image of Chicot. I had spent several hours just getting the motley right, and the fingers were proving to be quite a hassle as well…

'_Do you really have to hold your cross like that all the time?'_ I flicked a complaint towards Chicot, frustrated at my repeated failure.

'_Do you really have to sketch me?'_

'_Touché, Chicot. Touché.' _

Placing the sketchpad to the side, I stretched and glanced at the clock on the wall. 10:30 pm. I have spent the whole day and part of the night daydreaming and sketching, and somehow nobody has come for further interrogations despite me being pretty much detained in the hospital for murder and attempted murder. I don't even know how my recent confession of all those contract kills would interfere with what's going to happen to me.

A knock on the door got my attention, and a voice came in from the other side.

"Excuse me, may I come in?" It was Kirijo's voice. I smirked.

"Can I say no? I mean, I'm practically in your custody."

Kirijo opened the door and strolled in. "It's just in my habit to ask. If you feel refreshed now, I would like you to come with me to a meeting." I raised an eyebrow.

"You want me to accompany you? Might I remind you that I'm practically a captive in your hands, who have just recently tried to murder you?" Mitsuru glanced at me impatiently.

"The meeting has a lot to do with you and what your actions during our operations against Project Prometheus results in. I feel it only fair that you get a chance to defend yourself."

"Oh, so this is a trial then? Very well." As I threw the covers off, I frowned at the wrinkled hospital pajamas that I was wearing, and took a quick sniff at my armpits. "Whew! I reek. Perhaps I should clean up a bit before the trial? And plus, any chance you have something more…. presentable for me to wear?"

"I thought as much… the meeting is scheduled to start in 30 minutes. Take that time to clean up. I will have a set of clothes waiting for you." Mitsuru turned and walked out, high heels clicking all the way. I stared at her direction for a short while, slightly dazed, then chuckled under my breath.

_Man, that Sanada is one lucky guy….._

Strolling towards the bathroom, I locked the door behind me and quickly undressed. Turning the temperature to as hot as it would go, I let out a deep sigh as the hot, slightly scalding water rushed over my head.

_'Well Chicot? Any thoughts and suggestions on this?'_

_ 'Don't forget to scrub behind your ears.'_

_ 'Really?' _I rolled my eyes, exasperated.

_ 'I mean, first you get caught red-handed after committing murder, then you tried to murder their leader, and then you confess to multiple other potential murders, while at the same time revealing that you're affiliated with a group who apparently murdered their buddy. Can you screw yourself over more in their eyes?'_

_ 'Hey, I didn't know about the 'murdering their buddy' thing until I mentioned Strega. I liked the guy, remember? And what's with you and the M-word?'_

_ 'Because in their eyes, that's what we are. Cold-blooded murderers. Keep that in mind while talking to them. And don't forget to scrub behind your ears.'_

Grumbling to myself, I did as Chicot said. While slightly harsh, what Chicot said was true. In their eyes, I am nothing more than a cold-blooded murderer. Rolling my eyes, I applied more shampoo to my hair.

_This is such a goddam mess…_

After the shower, I wrapped a towel around my waist and walked out of the bathroom, finding a hoodie and a pair of jeans on my bed. A pair of sneakers and socks were at the foot of the bed. Grinning to myself, I pulled on the offered clothes, which somehow managed to fit perfectly.

A knock on my door preceded Mitsuru's voice: "Are you presentable?" Opening the door, I found her standing in the hallway with her arms crossed in front of her chest. I nodded, then shrugged.

"As presentable as I could be. Shall we then?"

"Let's." Mitsuru turned around and walked down the corridor, and I followed in her wake. Sensing a nudge from Chicot in my mind, I glanced at her left thigh. A holstered evoker hung there innocently.

_She's not taking any chances. Smart girl…_

After going up a few floors and past several corridors, we stopped in front of a giant double door. As Mitsuru knocked on the door, I felt a sudden flash of nausea:

_The weight of the Lupara was heavy in my hand as I lifted a foot, aiming at the double door in front of me. The swirling straps of my straitjacket circling my leg as I tensed every muscle. The corners of my mouth lifted up in a maniacal grin as I-_

"Gevauden. Are you alright?" Mitsuru was holding the door half open while looking at me with a confused look in her eyes. I was sagging against a wall, breathing heavily as I held a hand up against my face. Within my mind, Chicot blinked and shook his head in a disorientated manner. Lifting my hand from my face, I noticed a small patch of frost sublimating in the middle of my palm.

_What in the world… Dammit, I don't have time for this shit right now... _ Rubbing my hand against my leg to get rid of the frost, I raised my head and nodded towards Mitsuru.

"Yeah, I'm fine. A short dizzy spell, that all." Standing up and smoothing a hand through my hair, I straightened up and took a deep breath.

Mitsuru still looked somewhat troubled, but still pulled open the door and beckoned me in. Following her, I walked into what looked like an oversized lounge. Quite a lot of people sat in various sofas around a large tea table.

Glancing around, I recognized Akihiko and Shirogane, who was still looking a bit worse for wear. But everyone else was new to me. On one side of the table there was one guy with a cap and baseball jersey who was glaring at me, a woman with green hair, two girls who seemed to have prosthetics for all four limbs, and a woman with brown hair in a pink dress. Akihiko sat with them. On the other side there was Shirogane, a man with silver hair, another man with brown hair and headphones around his neck, a dark haired woman in a red jacket, a brunette in a police uniform, a tall man with black hair, glasses, and a scar on his scalp, and redhead wearing a somewhat revealing outfit. For some reason she and the brunette on the other side looked familiar….

Then it struck me, and my jaw went slack.

"Risette and Yukari Takeba are both part of my jury? Holy crap!" I blurted out right after regaining my cognitive functions. The two women who I just called out looked extremely shocked. I continued on:

"Sorry if I surprised you. It's just that I've been listening to your songs Risette and I figured I liked them. And in your case Takeba-san I'm just impressed that you're one of the few action show actors who actually do their action scenes personally. Most of them would just rely on stunt doubles…."

_'Caius?' _Chicot's voice was almost embarrassed.

_'What?'_

_ 'You're fan-boying.'_

_ 'No I'm…. well, maybe I am.'_ I concluded glumly. '_And to think that I am usually the one keeping you in check….'_

'_I am thou….. and thou art I….'_

'_Don't you even dare start that bullshit with me again Chicot._' Slightly shrugging, I took a deep breath to regain my composure.

"I digress. I suppose since you're all here staring at me, all of you are connected to Kirijo-san and are here to judge me? So shall we get on to business?" Taking a few steps forward, I took a seat on an empty armchair while Mitsuru walked to the other end of the table and sat down as well. Some of the assembled group still seemed to be recovering from the mood whiplash that they experienced. After a few seconds of awkward silent, Mitsuru decided to start:

"You are half right in your conjecture. This meeting is indeed, partially dedicated to figuring out what to do with you. But mostly we'd like to hear about what happened between you and Project Prometheus, since you are the only survivor of the Prometheus Project Tokyo Branch Massacre." Mitsuru paused and looked at me with distaste. "You made quite sure of that. So now we need you to give us a detailed report concerning them and their motives." I raised an eyebrow at that last statement.

"You mean you have absolutely no idea what they were up to? I remember Watanabe mentioning something about your company – Kirijo Corps, right? – providing funding for them. So I thought that as heiress of the corporation, you would have access to most of the info, right?"

"Unfortunately no. Project Prometheus was a mistake made by the previous generation, and one that I am determined to correct." Mitsuru had a determined glint in her eyes as she said that. I smirked at her expression.

"Interesting…. So the heiress doesn't have complete control over her empire…. Understandable, of course. I would've been surprised if the Kirijo Corps didn't have its own factions within." I rested my chin on my fist. "Well, I know what their motives are, and I do have firsthand experience with their methods. I suppose that it would be possible for me to share that with you people. But what's in it for me?" I almost laughed out loud at all the incredulous and furious expressions that was on display around the table.

"Why you little-!" The man with a scar started rising out of his chair, but the dark haired girl grabbed his wrist and stopped him from rushing me, scolding him with a firm "Calm down Kanji."

On the other side of the table, the dude with the baseball cap leapt on his feet and pointed his finger at me:

"You son-of-a-bitch Strega member! First you killed Shinjiro-sempai, Chidorita, and god-knows how many other people, and now you ask what's in it for you to clean up your own mess?! How much of an asshole can you be?!" I chuckled at his accusations, which only seem to aggravate him further.

"First things first, I did not kill Shinjiro or Chidori. I actually liked them both, and we were on quite good terms when I left Strega. And second, about all those people I killed on a contract, I've stopped doing that since 5 years ago. I'll bet you that Chidori's got twice the kill count as I do, and judging by your tone of voice she's quite far within your good graces.

"And third, if you had just paid attention to what we just said, you'd know that we're not cleaning up my mess." I pointed towards Mitsuru who was sitting right across me. "We're cleaning up hers." Baseball Cap looked like he was about to explode, but Mitsuru glanced at him and issued a sharp command:

"Calm down Jumpei." Jumpei sat down, still glowering at me. Leaning back a bit, Mitsuru redirected her attention to me, "I admit that this is my mess, but we need your help to start combating it. If whatever Project Prometheus is doing comes to fruition, it might have very bad implications for Japan. It is within your best interest to share your knowledge with us."

"Within my best interests?" I echoed mockingly. "I don't really think so. You see, I'm a simple man, a simple mercenary. Someone offends me, I whack them, end of business. My business concerned only the Tokyo branch of Project Prometheus, and they've already paid off all their debts, along with interest. I've no reason to interfere with your quarrel against the rest of Project Prometheus." Ignoring the startled looks from around the table, I leant back and folded my arms behind my head.

"And as for bad things happening to Japan, why should I be concerned? Judging by what Project Prometheus is working on, I think I have a pretty good chance of surviving whatever apocalypse they bring about, provided that I'm not directly within their crosshairs. I already have a nice scapegoat for the destruction of the Tokyo branch, namely your Shadow Operatives. Why should I draw more attention to myself?" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Kanji, Jumpei, the police girl and the headphone clad brunette almost quiver with anger. One of the prosthetics girl, one with long flowing silver hair and bright red eyes blurted out:

"Now ya can't be serious! How can ya not care about folks dyin' left right an' center! Cos that's what's gonna happen if Project Prometheus wins! I don' care who you think you are, but what ya sayin ain't gonna cut it!" As her tirade went on, she walked closer, almost shoving her face into mine. I noticed that there was something special about the texture of her face…

'_She's not human.' _Chicot piped up. _'Her facial skin texture isn't organic.'_

'_So she's an android or something?'_

'_Dunno. But she's not a girl with a lot of prosthetics as you had thought, but something more… man-made.'_

'_So the other one….'_

'_Might be the same thing.'_

"Hey, watcha doin', lookin' at me with that dazed out expression of yours? Listen to me while I'm talkin' dammit! DO YOU UNDERSTAND THE WORDS COMIN' OUTTA MY MOUTH?!" Snapping back to attention, I saw the robot girl looking practically livid. I also noticed that she was holding a giant battleax that she somehow conjured up. I smiled and lifted up both my hands in an official sign of surrender.

"Sorry about spacing out. I just noticed that you are not exactly human in the biological sense. And here I was thinking that you just had advanced prosthetics… But I digress. You accused me of not caring if I saw people dying all the time, and that makes me a bad person. Might I remind you that I practically spent my early teen years in such an environment? You've never checked out the Strega hit-list on our website, right? By the end of my stay in Strega, when a kill was at its cheapest, we had high school girls asking us to kill a rival in popularity, delinquents asking for us to kill the chair of discipline in their school, even one contract where a child of 12 requested us to kill his mother for grounding him! Can you believe that?!" Gasps and murmurs of shock echoed around the table at my statement. I cracked a grin at the shocked face of the robot girl in front of me.

"Yet we carried out each and every one of those contracts. A mercenary doesn't ask questions. We just take the coin and pull the trigger. I've seen humanity's darkest side, because I am the scum of the earth. So pardon me if my views of the world isn't as idealistic as the rest of you. And before you interrupt, I am fully aware that there are good people in this world as well. That's basically why I'm free of nihilism and haven't went on a huge Dark Hour murder spree. But I'm not exactly disposed to save humanity just because I can. That's a specialty of you heroes right?"

I cocked my head to a side and grinned a lopsided grin towards Mitsuru. Of all the people in the room, she was the only one who didn't have an absolutely incredulous and furious expression on her face. After a moment of thought, she sat up straight and folded her arms in front of her.

"What will it take for you to disclose Project Prometheus's motives and methods to us?"

"Now we're talking business." I sat up straight to match Mitsuru's posture. "Now what would a mercenary want for his services? Do I really need to spell it out?"

"Money." Mitsuru almost spat. The tension in the air was palpable. "If it's money you want then it's money you shall receive. Name a price."

I glanced up at the clock on the wall. The seconds hand was slowly ticking away to midnight. "Well, as much as I would love to discuss contract here and now, might I suggest another time since it's almost the Dark-"

Before I finished my sentence, a green aura descended upon the room and all electronics ground to a halt. That by itself wasn't surprising, what was surprising that I was the only human in the room. Around me lay 14 coffins. I gaped for a second, not knowing what to do.

'_They can't access the Dark Hour! But Shirogane and Kirijo are definitely Persona-users, I saw them active in Watanabe's artificial Dark Hour, but why-'_

'_Let's talk about that later Caius' _Chicot broke through my bewilderment _'Let's go! Get out of there when you can!'_

Nodding to myself, I sprang out of the couch and started heading to the door. Pausing with my hand on the door knob, I turned around and looked thoughtfully at Mitsuru's coffin.

_Hmm…. I wonder…._

* * *

><p><em><strong>POV Shadow Operatives<strong>_

Caius glanced up at the clock before replying: "Well, as much as I would love to discuss contract here and now, might I suggest another time since it's almost the Dark-"

And then he was gone. Vanished. Disappeared.

In a flash, Yosuke and Jumpei were on their feet and on either side of the armchair that Caius was sitting on. Narukami and Aigis both sped past them and burst out the front door, looking down both ends of the corrider. Fuuka turned to Mitsuru, holding her hand out.

"Mitsuru-san, give me you evoker!" Nodding, Mitsuru reached down for the evoker, intent on letting Fuuka start a quick scan right now.

Except the evoker wasn't there. Looking down in bewilderment, Mitsuru only saw an empty holster hanging off her left thigh. _When did-?_ Her thoughts were interrupted by Aigis's voice:

"Mitsuru-san. I found this on the chair where Caius was sitting." It was a note.

_Mitsuru-san,_

_ Surprised that I disappeared? I was equally surprised that you transmogrified. Why would that happen, I wonder? To be a Persona-user and not have access to the Dark Hour. Well, that seems almost criminal doesn't it? ;) _

_ As for our interrupted discussion, let us meet at the feet of Tokyo Tower at 11:45 pm in a week's time to continue our negotiations on more neutral grounds. All of the Shadow Operatives are welcome to attend._

_P.S. Thank you for being so kind to loan your evoker to me. If you can kindly bring me all the gear you confiscated from me (Shotgun, rounds, bracers, and evoker) to our next meeting, I would be much in your debt._

_Regards,_

_Caius Gevauden_

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: ? Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Okay, I know I said I'll buffer it a bit with social links and stuff, but then I realized I made Caius such a morally ambiguous character that none of the main cast would like him enough to form a social link with him. Maybe with the exception of Narukami, but he's a Wild Card so he doesn't count. The POV switch is a one-time only thing, I think. I just thought that it adds a nice spin.

And of course we're nearing the explanation of how Dark Hour exists after the events of P3! But since Caius isn't really one to delve too deep in such things, don't expect a full academic report…..

As always, read and review! Following also works…..


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

Commands issued to Persona

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>"Chicot! <strong>Mabufudyne<strong>!"

As the spiritual bullet passed through my mind, Chicot sprang from my head and unleashed an icy whirlwind towards all the shadows surrounding me. The muttering Tiaras instantly dissipated, screaming. A few Gigas and a single King remained. The King lifted his scepter above his head, but collapsed before he can finish the summoning ritual. Twirling an Italian stiletto dagger in my hand, I walked towards the group of shadows with a wide smirk.

_'It seems like our little King is out of mana.'_

_ 'It's called Spirit Pressure, Caius. At least call it SP if you want to shorten it.'_

_ 'Ikutsuki can call it whatever he wants. I'm still calling it mana.'_

_ 'He's a leading expert on Shadows and Personas!'_

_ 'He could be God himself, but he still pisses me off with that snobbish attitude whenever he's buying shadow parts from us. So I'll call it whatever I want, thank you very much…'_

Ducking under a Gigas' punch, I stepped in and swung the dagger up, slicing the several tendons along the arm. As the shadow roared in pain, clutching it's now-useless arm with the other, I straightened up and stabbed it through its throat.

Feeling a sudden draft on my left, I took a quick step forward, feeling the fist of the second Gigas barely brushing against my back. Quickly pulling my dagger out of the first Gigas, I spun around and rammed the blade into the second shadow. Bringing my knee up, I rammed it into the Gigas' chest. On a human it would have hit the solar plexus, and it seemed equally effective on the shadow. Letting out a scream of pain, the Gigas dissipated, covering me in a thick slimy black goo.

'_Yuck…. Seriously?'_

'_Heads up Caius!'_ Hearing the warning from Chicot, I looked and saw a giant golden fist flying from above towards me.

'_Holy Jesus mother of fu-!' _

Relaxing, I allowed Angelic Grace to flow through my body and yank me backwards. Cushioning my fall with a roll, I felt the ground vibrate as God's Hand smashed onto the ground. Looking up, I saw a smoky crater where I was standing, and the Gigas who cast it rushing towards me. My evoker was up to my chin in the blink of an eye.

The Shadow's fist connected heavily with Chicot's cross. I grunted as the blow flowed through Chicot, and coughed into my hand. I noticed a few specks of crimson spittle land on my palm.

"**Bufudyne!" **A block of ice encased the Gigas and shattered, killing the shadow within it. Looking around, I saw the King running away as fast as its stubby little legs would allow.

_Oh no you don't_. Snapping my right arm straight, the dagger flew from my hand and shot at the shadow like a silver arrow, plunging into the Shadow's head. The Shadow fell, screaming and dissipating. I doubled over, panting. I tasted a hint of blood in my mouth, and looked back down at the specks of blood in my palm.

'_You're driving yourself ragged Caius. This is, what, the third night you came out here looking for a fight?'_

'_Can't sleep. So I fight. The crash after an adrenaline rush always works.'_ Sighing, I wiped my hands on my pants as I walked to where the King had fallen.

'_You're coughing up blood now. You need rest.'_

'_I'll take my rest when this life is exhausted.'_ Pulling the knife out of the Shadow's head, I started rummaging through the Shadow's body for loot.

'_You totally ripped that line off from Assassin's Creed. And it doesn't even apply in your case! Do you want to die?'_

'_Look, I can't sleep, alright? Ever since the Watanabe incident, I can't sleep unless I'm half past dead!'_ I lost my temper and snapped. Chicot fell silent, unable to rebuke me. I replaced the dagger in a sheath strapped under my jacket.

It was the third night since my escape from the Shadow Operatives, and also my third sleepless night. Every time I closed my eyes, Watanabe's smirking face would appear in front of me, and I would wake up screaming to find half of the room encased in ice. The only remedy I've found was to exhaust myself fighting Shadows right before I go to bed.

Unfortunately, that also has its side effects. Opening a bottle of Coke, I poured the contents down my throat, making sure to rinse my mouth a bit with it to wash out the lingering taste of my own blood. As much as I hate to admit it, Chicot has a genuine point. My body is starting to break down from the constant fighting and lack of sleep.

'_Let's call it a night Chicot. Maybe I can get some actual sleep tonight. God know I'll need it before the arranged time.'_

'_Are you not worried that they'll just try to apprehend you?'_

'_Oh I can keep them talking for 5 minutes, stay alive for 10 more, and then the Dark Hour would save my butt.'_

'_Fair.'_

After 5 minutes of walking, I made it home. Opening my apartment door, I took off my jacket and unbuckled the dagger from my chest. Drawing the dagger out of the sheath, I examined the steel blade and the decorated handle. It was a good traditional Italian stiletto with a Damascus steel blade cross guard along with an ivory handle. The handle was decorated with a portrait of a woman on one side and a mirroring image of a skeleton on the other side. Typical Renaissance style decorations.

_Have to hand it to him. The old man at the antique shop knows how to pick his wares._

Grabbing a honing metal from the side, I started honing the edge of the blade while waiting for the adrenaline rush to die out. Making sure to only sharpen three centimeters from the tip, I also took note of how thick the blade was in total.

'_Wouldn't do for it to snap in the middle of battle….'_

'_I remember telling you that it was a waste of time and money when you spent half your savings on this knife and blackmailed one of the local thugs into teaching you knife fighting. Turns out I was wrong.' _Chicot commented in my mind.

'_HAH! Anyone recording here? Chicot admitted he was wrong!' _I gloated, while mentally nudging Chicot.

'_Still, it was unnerving how you were that into knives when you were 13.'_

'_Chicot, when I was 13 I was already shooting myself in the head with an evoker routinely. Jin was playing with firecrackers, Takaya just stole his first revolver and was shooting holes in the wall, and don't even get me started on Chidori and her axe….'_

'_Oh god, her axe…' _Both of us chuckled at the mental image of 13 year-old Chidori trying to swing around an axe almost as big as she was.

'_How long did it take for us to convince her to get a smaller axe?'_

'_Way too long. I remember that we spent a whole week finishing contracts back to back just to pay for fixing all the holes she left on the walls.'_

'_I thought the construction guy was about to call the cops once he finished the job. His face was hilarious…' _Grabbing a scrap piece of paper, I sliced it with the dagger to test the edge. It sliced through, leaving a smooth cut. Satisfied, I sheathed the knife and reached for my sleeping pills.

_Hopefully I'll get a good night's sleep tonight…._

* * *

><p>I woke with a start, Watanabe's lingering laugh echoing in my ears.<p>

_Not that dream again…. Dammit, what's going on?! _

I lifted my right hand to smooth my hair over, only to suddenly feel a strike on my forehead.

Opening my eyes wide, I swung my legs out on a sharp kick to wherever the strike came from and grabbed the dagger from my bedside table. The kick missed, but I used the momentum to move from lying on the bed to half crouching on the bed, and looked around.

I was alone. There's no sign of any assailant.

_What the-? _As sensation returned to the rest of my body, I felt what was wrong. Looking down, my right hand was encased in a block of ice. Looking at the icy block dumbly, I reached instinctively for Chicot.

_'Umm… Chicot, please tell me this isn't what I think it is…'_

_ 'I wish I can tell you otherwise, but you see it. You hit yourself on the head with a block of ice and didn't know it.'_

_ 'And you've been casting spells in my sleep again. Do I really need the suppressants?'_

_ 'No. You're not in danger. Yet. Probably just PTSD or something.'_

I looked at my frozen hand for another few seconds before flexing forcefully. The ice shattered, releasing me from my manacles. Glancing at the clock, I groaned internally. 5 am. Barely 4 hours have passed since I went to bed.

Heaving a heavy sigh, I leapt out of bed and headed towards the shower.

_Might as well start the bloody day…. So much for a good night's sleep…_

* * *

><p>"Gevauden-kun, you look quite tired. Are you sure you shouldn't be in bed?" Saitou asked. I looked up from the glass of whiskey and responded with a wry smile. It was late at night and I had done nothing productive that day.<p>

"Can't sleep, Saitou. When I do, the demons up here," I pointed at my forehead, "they come out to play. And it ain't pretty when they do."

"Really?" Saitou nodded. "I've seen things like that before. But only in war veterans. You seem a bit too young to be in any wars. But then again, war is not the only terror in the world."

"Do I have to be in a war to have bad dreams?" I joked, downing my whiskey and pouring myself another. "I just can't sleep properly. That's all."

"My my… you seem to be in quite a dilemma." A slightly playful voice rang up from my right. Turning around, I saw a young woman looking at me from half-closed eyes.

She had platinum blonde hair and strange yellow eyes. But what caught my attention most was her outfit. It looked similar to what elevator attendants would wear, only that it was all colored in velvet blue. Even the gloves, the hat, and the boots. I raised an eyebrow at that, and she giggled.

"Is it fitting for a gentleman like you to be appraising a lady like me for that long?" She teased. Rolling my eyes, I looked away and waved at Saitou.

"Saitou, get me another shot glass. I guess I owe this lady an apology." Receiving the glass from the smirking bartender, I filled it with whiskey and placed it in front of the lady. "Here you go. Peace offering. Just don't sue me for sexual harassment or something…"

Ignoring the drink, she kept her eyes fixed on me, propping her head up with one arm. I noticed a very large, very old-looking tome under her elbow.

"You say you couldn't sleep due to dreams. Anything special about them?"

"What do you mean? About the dreams?"

"Yes, of course. What else?" I chuckled and turned around to face her.

"Look lady, I don't really think I feel comfortable telling a girl I just met at a pub my deepest and darkest fears that keep me up at night. Are you?" The woman suddenly looked uncomfortable.

"I apologize if I overstepped my boundaries. I am so used to only dealing with guests that I don't have a good grasp on how to make conversation with strangers…" As if to hide her faux pass, she took the shot glass of whiskey and drained it in one go. Slightly coughing a bit, she looked at the glass with interest.

"Hmm… what an interesting beverage… It burns slightly down the throat, but seems to warm you up once it reaches the stomach. Perhaps this is to teach people that in order to gain anything, one must first endure a certain amount of pain or discomfort. Much thought seems to have been put into the creation of this drink." My eyes widened at the absurdity of her statement, and I started chuckling under my breath. She looked at me confusedly.

"Am I wrong about that?"

"I highly doubt that any drink contains such a profound message. Sometimes things are just the way they are, and there's no deeper meaning behind them. And as for whiskey…. Well, you'll have to drink a bit more to feel the full effects. Here, it's on me, but don't drink it too fast or else you'll regret it tomorrow morning." I refilled her glass. This time she took a small sip. I continued talking:

"You said that you're not good at dealing with strangers. Well, maybe we can exchange names first? My name is Caius Gevauden."

"Gevauden… what an interesting name. Definitely not Japanese, yet you look like any other Japanese person I've met…"

"Boy, if I had a penny for every time I was told that…." I slightly shook my head, refilling my glass. "My mother's family was from a French speaking part of Canada, and she was pretty adamant on me inheriting her name. My dad was a Japanese scientist who doesn't really care either way, so I received the name 'Gevauden'. But on the genetics part, it seems as though Dad's genes won the majority of it."

"Really? That's interesting… Your parents sound like interesting people."

"That they were."

"Were?"

"They're dead. Some freak accident on Tatsumi Port Island 12 years ago."

"Oh…. I apologize for bringing it up." The woman fidgeted and took another sip from her glass. I shrugged.

"That's fine. I barely remember any of it anymore. What about you? I told you about me, so it's only fair you tell me about you right?"

"My name is Elizabeth, and I am currently on a submission."

"What?" I looked at Elizabeth with a raised eyebrow. "You're on a submission?!" She suddenly looked just as confused as I was.

"Subscription? Application? Well, something of that sort."

"I believe you meant 'mission'?" Her eyes lit up with those words.

"Yes, I believe that was the word I was going for. As I said, I have a task I need to do, but I'm not strong enough to do it myself."

"Not strong enough to do a task? Are we talking about moving around heavy pieces of furniture, or is something much more serious at stake here?" Elizabeth let out a tinkling laugh at my joke.

"Oh it is the latter of course. If it were the former I could always ask strong men like you to help." She sobered up, and took another shot of whiskey. I silently refilled her glass. "There is a friend of mine who's trapped in a certain… situation, and I hope to free him from it. Unfortunately, I am only able to lessen his burden by a bit. But he still carries the blunt of it."

"Blunt?" I raised an eyebrow at that word.

'_For god's sake Caius, she's having a moment there and you're going all vocabulary Nazi on her?' _Chicot nearly screeched at me.

'_Shut up Casanova.'_

"Obtuse? Sharp? Something of that sort." Elizabeth shrugged. "The point is, I feel powerless. And I'm not used to feeling powerless. I have tried everything, even studied those who have pulled off amazing feats that should be well above their abilities, yet I came back none the wiser." I grimaced in sympathy.

"Have you ever thought you're just trying too hard?" Elizabeth looked up at me, confused. "Not everything in life can be forced open by brute force. I won't pretend I know anything about you or your friend or the situation that he is in, but I would suggest that you put him out of your mind for a while."

"But-" Elizabeth started to protest, looking bewildered, but I pressed a finger against her lips and silenced her.

"Look, from the way you've been talking about this, I can sense you're pretty devoted to this guy, and I would bet that you mean as much to him as he does to you. So let it go for a while, put it at the back of your head. Enjoy life. That's pretty much what he would want you to do instead of stressing over his mess. Nobody would wish this much anxiety on a friend.

"But I'm not telling you to give up. I'm saying that you have already put in all you've got and next to nothing came out of it. Now it's either up to his situation to change a bit, or for you to find new inspiration, and I highly doubt any of that would happen if you try to force it. So why make yourself miserable over something you can't change? Sit down, have a few drinks, and enjoy life. In the meantime, keep a vigil for any potential chances to help that friend of yours. That way, when a chance comes along, you would be in the best shape to take advantage of it." I finished my monologue and grinned at Elizabeth. Then I noticed that my finger was still on her lips.

_Oops._ Quickly drawing my hand back, I shook my head in embarrassment.

"Sorry 'bout that."

Elizabeth shook her head, licking her lips and looking at me thoughtfully. I suddenly felt goose bumps go down my back, and had a feeling that I was being analyzed.

"Don't worry about it. You are an intriguing person, Caius Gevauden. I look forward to meeting you again." She finished her last glass of whiskey, and stood up. Or at least she tried to, only to stumble and grab onto my shoulders for support. A red blush was going up her face, presumably from the alcohol.

"Whoops. I see what you mean when you said that I should drink more and slowly for the full effects of this drink. Such a surreal experience, but also quite pleasant… I could see why Margaret's only request to my Master after assuming my position was to add a liquor cabinet to the room. It seems that my sister is not as uptight as she would have me believe…." Almost mumbling to herself at this point, she waved absentmindedly to me and started walking out, her footsteps quite steady despite her apparent inebriation.

I was turning back to my drink when Chicot spoke up again:

'_Yo, finally getting some normal human interaction, right? I'd say that chick was a 9.5. What about you?'_

'_Seriously? She has another man. She might as well been waving a wedding ring in front of us with all her devotion to that guy she's trying to help.'_

'_Hey, might just be her brother. And plus, just because the flower's taken doesn't mean you can't appreciate it.'_

'_Well if it makes you happy, then yes, I do find her very attractive and her personality very intriguing. But I don't have time for a relationship right now.'_

'_Jesus Christ, a few days ago you were too angst-filled for it. Today you're too busy for it. Tomorrow you might be too dead for it. Grab the fucking moment Caius!'_

'_I would wait until this whole nightmare spell-casting thing is resolved, before I take my chances with the ladies. PTSD was never a good selling point, and neither is casting ice spells in your sleep.'_

'_I know a few Elsa fans who won't mind the ice spells part.' _Chicot sniggered at his own joke, but then turned serious. _'But on another note, we're 5 minutes from the Dark Hour. Maybe you'd like to walk her home or something? Wouldn't it be just swell if the only lady you've chatted up for god knows how long suddenly fell to Apathy Syndrome right after meeting you?'_ Grumbling to myself, I checked my watch, and Chicot was right about the time. It was just a minute since Elizabeth left, maybe I can catch up with her-?

Throwing some cash on the table, I picked up the bottle of whiskey and hurried to the exit where she just left. Swinging the door open, I looked around for her distinctive hair and clothes.

_What the hell?_

Despite the streets being extremely well lit and not having any nooks and crannies nearby, she was nowhere to be found.

It was like she had teleported away.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Yay, Elizabeth is back! I always thought that she was the true Wild Card in any situation, especially in Arena. And for the new cover picture, it's a pen and pencil sketch of mine that eventually turned into Chicot and Caius! As you can see I got rid of the glasses in my fic, but hope you guys still like it!

nostalgicCyanide: Glad you like the fic so much! I promise I won't disappoint! (PM me if I do)

Well, thanks for reading, and please review! Doesn't matter if positive or negative, just review! (please be civil though)


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>I stood in front of Tokyo Tower on the agreed upon night, a cup of coffee in my hands. It was 11:30 pm. Sipping from the cup, I tried to shake the vestiges of fatigue from my head.<p>

_'Don't be such a baby. You actually got 8 hours of sleep yesterday night, and it is your fault that you decided to come early to set things up.' _Chicot piped up. _'Talking about it, your dreams have not been as vivid ever since you spoke with that Elizabeth chick. Maybe you should do that more often.'_

_ 'If I ever see her again.' _I grumbled. I still haven't figured out how she disappeared so quickly, and she definitely wasn't a regular at Saitou's. _'And plus, I still find ice in my room after waking up. That can't be good.'_

_ 'C'mon, brighten up!' _Chicot sent me a mental image of him doing a silly jig. I snorted at the ridiculous image.

_'Where'd you learn how to do that?'_

_ 'I always could've. It just never occurred to me to try until now.'_

_ 'Do not flash my mind with pornographic images.'_

_ 'Aww….But why not? I can't show you anything that you haven't seen or pictured in some time in your life.'_

_ 'I would still rather you refrain from doing so.'_

_ 'Sure, sure….' _Chicot agreed, but I got a feeling that he was just placating me. Before I can follow up, he suddenly tensed. _'Persona-users around. I guess the Shadow Ops also decided to come early.' _

Looking around, I saw a ridiculously long limousine parked in the corner of the plaza. It seems to be at least making an attempt to be parked inconspicuously, but it was still gathering quite a lot of attention from both locals and tourists. I mentally face-palmed.

_'The hell is THAT?!'_

_ 'That is apparently the Empress' ride. There's a few more Persona-users loitering about though.'_

_ 'When did you become a sensory type?'_

_ 'I'm not. It's just that us fighting alone for so long has forced me to be a lot more aware of our surroundings than the average combat-type Persona. And plus, if you actually looked around, you'll see that they kinda stick out.'_

Following Chicot's advice, I looked around and almost immediately recognized Yukari Takeba. I didn't recognize her by her face, or by anything else, but by the huge leather guitar case she slung over her back. In one episode of _Featherman Victory_, her character used a similar case to conceal her bow and arrow when her transformation device was stolen and she still wanted to participate in the final fight.

_'Fanboying again, Caius?'_

_ 'It was a good show, okay? Now get off my ass about it.'_

_ 'Hehe… on a more serious note, she's not the only one.'_

Scanning the crowd more carefully, I caught sight of the distinctive blue cap of Shirogane. He was together with a silver-haired man with a golf bag slung over his back, a black-haired girl who was wearing a red jacket, and a brunette with a green jacket over her police uniform. I recognized all of them from my last meeting with the Shadow Operatives. At another corner, I noticed a kid, maybe mid to late teens, walking a white dog. Alone that wouldn't have caught my eye, but the kid was carrying a long case that looked like it was meant to hold a fishing rod. Probably another concealed weapon.

_ 'Jesus Christ, how many people do they think they need to take me down? And why all the bulky weapons?!' _Chicot chuckled in agreement. At that moment, I noticed a door of the limousine open, and Mitsuru walked out with Akihiko and a maid. Mitsuru was holding a duffel bag, and I noticed the maid holding something long and wrapped in cloth, presumably Mitsuru's rapier. Akihiko was wearing leather gloves, but as the crew walked closer I can see it bulging at certain locations that suggest he has his knuckles wrapped under the gloves.

_'Wow, they're all ready for a fight.'_

_ 'Can you blame them?'_

_ 'Guess not. Glad I chose a crowded location.'_

Checking my watch, I saw that it was time. Walking forwards, I greeted the others with a warm smile that wasn't returned. Mitsuru held out the duffel bag to me with an icy expression. Receiving it, I quickly sifted through the contents.

'_Evoker, check. Lupara, check. Rounds, check. Holy shit, I had that many megido rounds? Jesus Christ…. And bracers, check. Okay, everything here.'_

_ 'Why did you ask for your evoker? You have the one you stole from Mitsuru.' _Chicot asked as I straightened up and handed her the evoker, which was in a huge envelope. She received it and checked the contents as I expected.

_'Sentimental values. It's my Strega evoker.'_

Apparently satisfied that I have not given her a fake, Mitsuru looked at me.

"Well? We are here. Shall we go somewhere more private and talk business?"

"Get all your Shadow Operatives here first. I'd rather not have everyone miss out on the important stuff, and I'd rather have them all in one place once time comes. Easier to identify them that way." Mitsuru and Akihiko looked slightly shocked at my knowledge of their presence. I shrugged and pointed first at Yukari, then at the kid walking his dog, and then at Shirogane's group. "When you're carrying around a giant leather case for no apparent reason, it kinda catches the eye. And tell Shirogane that his hat is way too much of a trademark to be suitable for any kind of covert operation."

Mitsuru winced and Akihiko face-palmed. I noticed out of the corner of my eye Shirogane mirroring Akihiko's actions, and Takeba blushing a bright crimson. _So they have a bug on either Mitsuru or Akihiko… Good, saves me some time._

"You said you want them to be in one location. Why? Are you planning something? What is this about 'when the time comes'?" Mitsuru quickly recovered from her shock and started shooting questions in my directions. I shrugged nonchalantly.

"What do you think, Empress? When the Dark Hour hits of course. How am I going to tell your coffin apart from the hundreds of other coffins if you're all mixed up? Now cover me." Crouching down so that Mitsuru and Akihiko blocked any passerby's view of me, I pulled the Barbaric Bracers out of the duffel bag and started strapping them on. Looking up, I saw both Mitsuru and Akihiko looking at me confusedly. I hastened to explain myself.

"Look, I'm quite aware that we started out on a weird note, what with you guys catching me right after I killed Watanabe, and then me having the little spat against you and Shirogane. Yet I'd still like to start a relatively healthy working relationship with you guys. So now I'm offering three free services, as a peace offering if you will. One would be reintroducing your group to the Dark Hour, since you would seem to benefit from that, and another would be guarding you guys against the shadows while you wake up."

"Why do you think we need guarding?" Akihiko snapped at me while Mitsuru took out a phone and dialed a number on it. I rolled my eyes.

"Look, I've been pulling people out of their coffins during the Dark Hour for a long time. You'll be disorientated for a while right after the coffin lid is lifted. And if there's something I learned after a few years in the Dark Hour, it's that us Persona-users seem to be a delicacy for Shadows, so if they ever catch you fresh out of your coffin, you might as well be served on a silver platter with a bottle of fine wine to wash down your bones." As I was talking, I pulled the sleeves of my jacket over the bracers and started strapping the evoker onto the gunbelt. Akihiko was looking at me with a face that clearly said 'I hate you but you have a point'. Mitsuru, who had finished her call, interjected:

"If you were so worried about us, then why didn't you set the meeting location to somewhere more defensible?" Looking up, I saw the other Shadow Operatives gathering to our location. Four more figures left the limousine and approached us. _Jesus Christ, they came full stocked…_

I looked to Mitsuru and smirked before answering: "Because I don't trust you guys yet. And apparently, you don't trust me either, since you brought a full battalion with you. I needed somewhere highly populated so you guys would think twice before getting dirty." I laughed lightly at Mitsuru's expression. "That's right. I'm pretty much using every non Persona-user here as a hostage. But since it's only as an insurance, you wouldn't mind would you?

"No, hold it, it actually doesn't matter if you mind or not. Just know that if you try to apprehend me by force or anything like that, things would get really ugly for all the innocent people around here. But if that's not part of your plan, we can talk business." Waving cheerfully at the other Shadow Operatives as they arrived, I checked my watch. 10 minutes to the Dark Hour. Mitsuru still looked disturbed by my declaration, but apparently decided to drop it for now.

"You mentioned that you are rendering us three services. What's the third one?"

"The third one? Oh. You mean that." Straightening up from where I was crouching over the duffel bag, I grinned cheerfully, "It was already rendered. The service was not killing all of you when I first found out that none of you could access the Dark Hour." I chuckled at the disturbed expressions of the Shadow Operatives, "What? It never crossed you mind that I could've done that?"

Suddenly a familiar voice drawled out from the back of the group.

"Huh. So that's what you truly are, Caius. You know, I think I actually like you a lot better this way…" I tensed up, as did Chicot.

_'That voice….'_

_ 'Tohru Adachi?!'_

Sure enough, there he was, at the back of the group, slightly slouched over, grinning widely with his hands in his pockets. Strolling to the front of the group, he stood right in front of me, looking at me up and down.

"I guess this makes up for the pain of getting called out of the detention center as extra back up. However, I never expected you to be the rogue Persona-user that has the Shadow Operatives all in a fix…" Finding my tongue, I managed a reply:

"I thought you were in jail… something about that serial murder case in Inaba…"

"Oh, that? First, it wasn't even a serial murder. I only snuffed off two of the three killed. Some kid did the third. And second, they couldn't convict me. At all. I mean, nothing would stand in court, and my appointed defense lawyer basically had a field day. So of course, the National Police handed me over to the Shadow Operatives, and they detain me. And call me out as an auxiliary unit when shit goes down, like now."

"Huh. I wondered how you managed to pull of those weird murders, but now that I know you're a Persona-user, things start to make more sense. Never took you for a neat killer though. I tend to make a mess whenever I let loose." Adachi let out a bark of laughter at my comment.

"Yeah, I'd say. I've heard what you did to the Tokyo branch of Project Prometheus. Apparently they had to use DNA identification to tell which hunk of corpse belonged to who. As for me, well I didn't really decide how to kill them. It was more of a matter of chance that they ended up that way."

"We have a lot to catch up on, it seems. For now, I'm just glad to see you." With that, I pulled Adachi into an embrace. I felt him tense for a second, but then he loosened up and returned the hug.

"Yeah. Glad to have my drinking buddy back."

Both of us chuckled. I heard someone in the group of gawking Shadow Operatives mutter: "Why am I not surprised to learn that those two know each other…"

Breaking the hug, I checked my watch again. Only 1 minute until the Dark Hour. Turning to face all the Shadow Operatives, I lifted my arms wide as if to embrace all of them.

"Welcome…. To the-"

A green aura descended upon us before I can finish the sentence. In a blink of an eye all the people in front of me have been replaced with coffins. I sighed sadly and finished lamely:

"Dark Hour…. Jesus Christ, the world just hates me right?"

'_Hehehe…. Well, you can just stop with your theatrics.'_

'_You know, it's just not the same if I'm not being dramatic.' _Shaking my head, I picked up the belt with the custom rounds and evoker strapped on, and buckled the thing around my waist. Looking at the 13 coffins in front of me, I reached forward to the first one in preparation to open the lid…

'_Wait.' _Chicot stopped me before I could pull the lid off.

'_What?'_

'_Shadows. A shit ton of them. There's no way you'll be able to open the second coffin once you pull of the lid of the first.' _Looking around, I saw that Chicot was right. Mayas were lurking around the corner of the plaza, while gleaming yellow eyes shown out from every dark corner I can see.

'_Holy shit. I knew we would attract a bunch, but already?'_

'_Heh, you were always surrounded by shadows whenever the Dark Hour came out. You usually only notice the brave or stupid ones who decide to confront you, or the unfortunate ones that you caught feeding. Now, however, all of them are staring at you because they sense a huge amount of vulnerable Persona-users.'_

'_Jesus Christ it's like an all-you-can-eat buffet. Wait… how do you know that? Are you sure you're not a sensory type?'_

'_All Strega Personas knew that. Medea told us all. We just never thought it necessary to worry you guys with it.'_

'_Gee, thanks….'_ Looking around, I tried to count all the yellow eyes shining from the darkness. I gave up once I reached 100. _'Jesus Christ, do you think that our little setup would be enough for this batch?'_

'_Nope. Definitely not. Won't even be enough to buy you time to open all the coffins the safe way.'_

'_So… the dangerous way then?' _

'_It seems like it. Don't worry, we never killed anyone by opening the coffins the dangerous way. And plus, it's only really dangerous for non-Persona-users anyway.'_

'_Who told you I was worrying?'_ Ignoring Chicot's unconvinced snort, I rummaged through my pocket and pulled out a zio gem. With my other hand I drew my evoker and pointed it against my temple.

'_Ready Chicot?'_

'_Lock and loaded.'_

Taking a deep breath, I felt Chicot focus his energy upon the 13 coffins. I focused my own mind on a corner of the plaza, and clenched the zio gem tighter. My breath came out as a low hiss between my teeth. My fingers tightened on the trigger.

"Chicot…. **Mabufudyne**." The sound of shattering glass rang out as Chicot unleashed his icy fury upon the coffins of the Shadow Operatives. With a giant crash, all the coffins were encased in thick layers of ice, which proceeded to crack and shatter. From each block a Shadow Operative fell out, dropping to their knees and breathing heavily. None of them seemed awake yet.

Once the coffins broke, a giant roar arose among the Shadows. I saw countless dark figures materialize and charge towards the group of people in front of me. Gritting my teeth, I lifted the zio gem and smashed it against the ground.

**Zio Gem**.

A burst of lightning flashed from above and struck down on a corner of the plaza, striking a trash can and, more importantly, the mazio gem I placed in there earlier. Countless weak bolts of lightning flashed out from there, many of them striking at Shadows and forcing them to back off. One bolt strayed to a side and hit a backpack on a bench, triggering the magaru gem in it. Countless wind blades ripped their way out of the bag, with one of them finding another planted gem somewhere, and so forth…

**Mazio Gem, Magaru Gem, Maragi Gem, Mabufu Gem, Magaru Gem, Maragi Gem…..**

The different colors of the four elements flashed around the plaza. All the transmogrified humans were protected by their coffins, but the shadows weren't that lucky. Their screams filled the air, contrasting sharply with the beautiful light show created by countless spells flashing in the Dark Hour. I smiled in satisfaction. It seems that all the late nights spent in front of the desk planning the layout of all those spell gems didn't go to waste….

A Gigas busted though the chaos and hurtled towards me, still smoking from the several spells that struck it. Raising my Lupara, I unloaded both barrels into its torso, halting the shadow's advance. Taking advantage of its pause, I stepped in, drawing my stiletto and slitting the Giga's throat in one quick movement.

As the Gigas disintegrated, I looked around and became acutely aware that the storm of spells have died down. I have succeeded in destroying all the Mayas and weakening most of the stronger shadows, but that was no victory. All the Kings in the massive army of Shadows waved their staffs and summoned more Mayas, sending me pretty much back to square one. Looking back, I saw the Shadow Operatives slowly stirring as if they just woke up.

'_Well shit. All those gems and it barely bought us 5 minutes.'_

'_3 minutes and 15 seconds, to be exact.'_

'_Shut your mouth Chicot, and set up a perimeter.'_

'_Roger.'_

Pressing the muzzle of the evoker against my chin, I pulled the trigger again.

"Chicot, **Mabufudyne**!"

Chicot materialized behind me and raised his mask up high. Countless tiny chucks of ice materialized around us and surrounded us in a huge icy vortex, preventing the shadows from advancing further.

'_How long can you keep up this wall Chicot?'_

'_2 minutes maximum, for your own safety. If they're still not awake by then, I will force you to escape and leave them behind.'_

'_Hopefully it won't come to that. I'll feel like crap if I lead them to their deaths.'_

'_Oh, and by the way, you'll only have Angelic Grace at your disposal for the ones who get through the blizzard.'_

'_Fair enough.'_

As we were talking, a few Snakes made their way through the icy wall and lunged towards the Shadow Operatives. Swinging around, I unloaded both barrels in their general direction, causing the shadows to halt their advance. Quickly taking a megido round from my belt, I dropped it on the ground and crushed it underfoot.

**Megido Gem.**

A blast of almighty energy knocked the Snakes back as I quickly reloaded the Lupara, selecting maragi rounds this time. Pulling the trigger as soon as I snapped the barrel shut, I unleashed a blast of fire on the Snakes, sending them screaming into oblivion.

Catching a flash of movement at the corner of my eye, I instinctively leapt up into the air, summersaulting over the Iron Dice that just tried to crash into me. Flipping around, I saw that the shadow had rolled a snake eyes. I unsheathed my dagger as I descended towards the shadow, landing heavily on top of one of the two die while plunging the tip of the dagger into the mask adorning the other. Feeling the texture of the Iron Dice change under my feet, I leapt off as the shadow died.

Hastily reloading my shotgun, I heard a giant roar behind me, and spun around just to see several Beetles charging through the blizzard and towards the Shadow Operatives. Snapping my arm straight, my dagger flew from my hand and planted itself in one of the chinks of the lead beetle's shell. The shadow reared up in pain, crashing into its fellows and landing in a confusing heap.

Taking advantage of their confusion, I rushed towards and unloaded both barrels into the pile of shadow. The force of the shot didn't kill the shadows, but was strong enough to push them back into the blizzard, where they froze and shattered. Doubling over to catch my breath, I checked the Shadow Operatives again. I can't even see them properly due to the bad lighting.

'_Oh sure. Go ahead. Take a long, long nap. I'm doing just fine here. No trouble at all…' _I grumbled while reloading the Lupara.

'_Get your head in the game Caius. There's still more of them coming. And plus, you're at half time.'_

'_I know. Keep the barrier u-'_

Before I could finish my sentence, a huge rolling fireball burned a path through the blizzard and crashed right into Chicot. He disappe ared with a screech, taking the blizzard with him while I crouched down, holding my head in pain. A Tank rolled closer, its cannon smoking from the spell it just cast.

_Shit… that was an Agidyne with Mind Charge right? The shadows are getting a lot stronger… _

I gasped for breath and fumbled with my evoker as the Tank slowly turned its cannon towards me. The other shadows just seem to be spectating at this point, waiting for their champion to kill me. I tried to stand up, only to find my knees wobbling too much to support my weight.

"Am I going to die here? Well, at least I'm gonna die guarding Adachi. Not that bad a death, in the end…." I muttered to myself. The black hole of the cannon lit up with another Agidyne spell. I smiled tiredly and closed my eyes in resignation.

"Justice will be mine! **Shields of Justice!**" A sudden voice yelled out from somewhere behind me. Opening my eyes in surprise, I see ethereal riot shields materialize in front of me, protecting me from the Agidyne spell that would've killed me.

Looking back, I saw Shirogane standing, breathing heavily as his Persona dematerialized. Around him the other Shadow Operatives were all getting up. The girl in the red jacket turned towards me.

"**Diarahan!**" I felt my strength returning as the healing aura washed over me. Standing up, I thanked the girl with a curt nod, and turned to face the shadows once more. They halted their advance, noticing that their buffet seems to be fighting back. Mitsuru walked up next to me.

"You have fulfilled your promise to the word. The Shadow Operatives are in your debt."

"Glad to be appreciated. Now let's just clean up the mess here."

"Agreed."

The Shadow Operatives lined up on either side of us, and all of them raised their evokers.

"PERSONA!"

The flashes from all the spells released were a thousand times more blinding than my little light show with all the spell gems. The screams of shadows filled the skies once more. I laughed aloud, exhilarated by the turn of events.

"Snrk…. Heheheheheheh….. hahahahahaha…..HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA-!"

'_Caius, look.' _Chicot interrupted, his voice and mood unexpectedly stern.

'_What, spoilsport? We're winning.'_

'_Look. The Shadow Operatives are all sending their spells parallel to the ground. You do know what that means right?' _His voice sent a chill down my spine, and I paid closer attention to my comrades. Sure enough, Chicot was right.

_ 'Oh…. Shit. We're in a heavily populated tourist site, and they're all immensely powerful Persona-users… Shit!'_

Before I can open my mouth to warn them, I heard a clear voice ring out to my side:

"Haraedo-no-Okami! **Agneyastra**!" As I spun around, I saw the police girl pull the trigger to her evoker, summoning a golden samurai who seemed to have stolen Darth Maul's lightsaber. Swinging the staff around, the Persona summoned several flaming comets down on the army of shadows. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed one comet headed for a cluster of coffins at the side.

_Fuck!_ Quickly pressing the evoker against my chin, I pulled the trigger and materialized Chicot right in front of the coffins. Raising his cross, he blocked the stray comet with his giant cross. I coughed and doubled over from the impact.

_Shit! That was a lotta force…_ Adachi, seeing me crouch down, jogged over and stood between me and the shadows. Looking over his shoulder, he raised an eyebrow.

"Who got you?" I chuckled a bit at his question and shook my head.

"Nobody. Just preventing collateral damage…" Straightening up and raising my voice, I shouted: "Yo, everyone! Angle all your spells downwards to limit their range! The average '–dyne' spell could shatter a coffin, and a '–la' level spell could also shatter a coffin in a few hits! Keep the collateral damage to a-" Before I finished my sentence, I heard another voice on the other side of the group.

"Isis, **Panta Rhei!**"

Spinning around, I saw Takeba summoning her Persona and unleashing a huge gale towards a group of Mayas. And behind the Mayas are another cluster of coffins.

_What did I just fucking say?!_ Rolling my eyes, I summoned Chicot again and materialized him in front of the coffins again. As I expected, the huge gale scattered all the shadows, sending them screaming to oblivion, and kept going straight towards Chicot and the coffins behind him.

I doubled over again from the powerful wind spell, this time coughing up a few droplets of blood. Adachi, who was watching the whole thing, frowned in annoyance to Takeba, who seemed to have noticed her mistake and was looking at me apologetically.

"Bitch…" He muttered. I straightened up, spun around, and stormed over until I was almost toe to toe with Takeba.

"What did I JUST SAY about COLLATERAL DAMAGE?! Aim your MOTHERFUCKING spells DOWNWARDS DAMMIT! And what's with the spell you used? One does not simply use PANTA MOTHERFUCKING RHEI on a bunch of MOTHERFUCKING MAYAS in a MOTHERFUCKING POPULATED AREA! WHAT IS FUCKING WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!" Yukari leaned back, looking extremely alarmed and embarrassed at my outburst. Most of the Shadow Operatives are staring at us by now, and Adachi is barely holding back his laughter.

Misturu seems to be the first to remember that we were still surrounded by Shadows. Swinging her rapier around, she turned to face the shadow army again and raised her voice:

"Do as he says and don't get distracted! Angle the spells downward to limit range and always be mindful of where you attack! Let's go!"

I growled and turned back to the shadows, knuckles white from clenching my evoker.

_Bloody amateurs…._

* * *

><p>I crouched on the ground, gasping heavily. With all the Shadow Operatives pulling their weight, the shadow army got decimated easily. But in the process of doing so, I took more hits from the Shadow Operatives than from all the shadows. Mitsuru and Akihiko caught up on the whole "avoiding collateral damage" thing pretty quickly, but the rest of the Shadow Operatives still let loose the occasional spell in the direction of pedestrian coffins. Which meant I would summon Chicot like an idiot and take the hit instead of letting random people die en masse.<p>

"**Diarahan**!" I felt the healing aura wash over me again and my stamina regenerated. Looking up, I saw the girl with the red jacket smiling at me. Taking a deep breath, I straightened up and nodded at her in gratitude. She was the one who kept me alive while her idiotic comrades kept knocking me down.

I heard the click of high heels behind me, and turned around to see Mitsuru approaching me.

"I believe we are in your debt once more. If it wasn't for your actions, many innocents would have died from our inexperience." I shrugged.

"Unintentional mass murder is generally bad for business, so I learned early on to avoid those if possible. However, it does seem that your Shadow Operatives are pretty…inexperienced when it comes to urban shadow warfare." A disturbed expression flashed through Mitsuru's face, but she quickly composed herself.

"Yes, I am quite aware of that. Which is why I'm willing to hire you as a mercenary unit of the Shadow Operatives for an extended amount of time." Reaching inside her coat, Misturu produced a business card and handed it to me. I took the card, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"I think I can pull up one of the contracts that we used to use in Strega and hand it to you for review…. But are you sure about this? I'm not sure my style would really fit with your… team dynamics."

Something that might have been a smile flashed across Mitsuru's face, but it disappeared too fast for me to tell. "Well, from what I see, regardless of your motives and thoughts, the end result of your actions is that you minimize the deaths of innocents. As long as that happens, I think you'll fit into the team just fine." Misturu held out a hand to me.

"Well then..." Taking her hand, I shook it and smiled at Misturu. This time it was a genuine smile. "I look forward to working with you."

"Welcome to the Shadow Operatives, mercenary."

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Finally! This chapter took ages to write. And before the flames crawl up, let me explain why I made the Shadow Ops bad at avoiding collateral damage. The SEES fought in Tartarus, and IT fought in the TV world, none of which have random pedestrians standing around. Caius, however, have been fighting in the city since Day 1, hence his expertise in avoiding killing random people.

Thanks for all the encouraging reviews! I'm glad so many people seem to like Caius, Chicot, and their weird sense of humor!

In response to the Guest review, do you seriously expect me to give away the plot point this early in the game? Glad you like the fic though! And don't worry, I will update this fic pretty much consistently.

On updating though, since it's finals week soon, I have a feeling I'll be swamped with review and finals and papers and life. So just a head's up if you don't see an update for the next two weeks, it's not because I jumped ship, but because of college….

As always, please review!


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p><em>'Ugh, how the hell do you get this tie on?'<em> I stood in front of the mirror while struggling with a tie.

_ 'Youtube it.'_ Chicot replied lazily.

_'That… actually makes sense…' _Sitting down in front of my laptop, I waited impatiently for the old thing to boot up. Once the screen came to life, I clicked on a browser and quickly found an appropriate video. Clumsily imitating the video's instructions, I managed to fasten the wine-red tie around my neck in an appropriate manner. I stood in front of the mirror again to check how I looked.

'_Black suit, black pants, gray shirt, and red tie. Looking good bro! You'll get all the ladies.'_ Chicot quipped at the back of my head.

'_Sarcasm much?'_

'_Nope. I actually mean it. Have some faith in yourself. You're no Brad Pitt, but you at least look decent.'_

'_Seeing that you're a facet of my personality, I must have Narcissistic Personality Disorder.' _As Chicot chuckled at the back of my head, I stretched and frowned as the suit limited my movements. _'I still don't like this. The suit is way too restricting on my movements.'_

'_Caius, let's face it, the only two situations you'll need full movement range tonight is if you're getting attacked or getting laid. And neither of those require you to keep the suit on.'_

'_You just never change, don't you? Remind me how I got into this mess again?'_

_ 'You know full well how it all happened…'_

* * *

><p><em> "She WHAT?!" I stared at Adachi incredulously. The former detective, who have been temporarily released to give me the reviewed contract from the Shadow Operatives, sat beside me in Saito's bar and grinned lazily at my agitated expression.<em>

_ "Well, I don't know where she got the idea, but Kirijo decided it was a good idea to give you a welcome party. Formal attire is required. You know, suit and tie and all that fun stuff."_

_ "And if I decide I don't want to come?"_

_ "Nope. Won't work." Adachi grinned widely before taking a sip from his sake. The bastard was obviously enjoying himself. "Since the party is set in one of the few times when all the Shadow Operatives can be assembled, Kirijo arranged for you to report on Project Prometheus' goals and motives and the Dark Hour during this gathering."_

_ "But that still doesn't mean…" Adachi raised my newly signed contract to my nose, a finger pointing at one line in particular. I read the line in question:_

_ "Item 3: The Mercenary agrees to disclose all details regarding the (a) methods and goal of Project Prometheus and (b) the Dark Hour phenomenon to the best of his knowledge at the time and location indicated by the Client." I blinked. "Well shit…."_

_ "Yep, you're coming to this party whether you like it or not, since you signed the dam contract yourself." Downing the rest of his sake in one swig, Adachi started to walk out of the pub. "Well, don't let me deter you from dressing up. I'm still technically in deep legal shit as far as the Shadow Ops are concerned, so I have to hurry back." Right before leaving the club, he looked back at me one more time, his grin widening even more._

_ I flicked him the finger, attracting a howl of laughter from my drinking buddy before he left the bar. I looked glumly at my bottle of whiskey._

_ "Fucking bastard….."_

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, I stood in front of the Shadow Operatives HQ. Raising an eyebrow, I glanced down at my phone, rechecking the address that Adachi left me.<p>

_Yep, this looks right….. _I then looked back at the monstrosity of a building in front of me. _This, however, looks like it's about to give the Cologne Cathedral a run for its money….._

The building in front of me could only be described as a palace. It looked like something that would pop out if the White House ever decided to mate with the Kremlin. And it was used as a base of operations for a shadow organization.

_'Just which part of this screams 'Shadow' __to you?!' _I ranted at Chicot.

_ 'Well, we are talking about a group of people who drive a limo to a covert operation. So technically…'_

_ 'Yeah, yeah, you've got a point. Dam, I feel under-dressed now…' _Shaking off my trepidation, I stepped into the ridiculously majestic building, knocking three times on the oaken doors. A middle-aged woman in a deep purple kimono opened the door.

"Welcome guest! May I show you to your room?" The woman bowed deeply in front of me and asked in a cheerful voice. I took a step back, alarmed by the sudden change of plans.

'_My room? Has this suddenly turned into a slumber party or something? How long IS this shit gonna last?'_

'_Relax Caius, I'm pretty sure any bedroom here would be more comfy than your apartment.' _

'_That's beyond the point!'_

While I was still trying to understand what was going on with the situation, two voices rang up from behind the woman in front of me.

"Mother!"

"Amagi-san!"

The woman turned around with her eyes brimming with amusement, and faced the two figures that came jogging up behind her. One was a woman in a maid uniform, while the other was a young woman with raven black hair wearing a pink kimono. After skidding to a halt in front of us the maid started bowing to both the kimono woman and me while muttering half formed apologies, and the young woman just rested her head in her hands and sighed. The woman who greeted me let out a tinkling laugh.

"Oh relax Yukiko. Kikuno-san was busy with all the other guests and I heard this fine young man knocking on the door. You see, old habits do die hard."

"But mother! You got the lines are wrong! You can't show him to his room! We are not even in the inn!" The young woman, Yukiko, paused in the middle of her rant as her facial expression became vacant for a second.

"In… the inn…" she muttered quietly to herself. Suddenly she doubled over and started laughing hysterically.

"Snrk…..Hahahahahahaha… in... the inn! Oh God… hahaha… my sides! I, I can't… hahahahahahahah… oh god I can't breathe, I…. hahahahahah…"

I stared at the kimono clad laughing hyena in front of me, and looked towards Yukiko's mother, raising an eyebrow. She chuckled and went on to explain:

"Oh don't worry. She does that some time. I had thought that she would grow out of it when she got older, but it just doesn't seem to be kicking in yet…" As the older woman's voice trailed off, the maid walked up to me and bowed.

"Gevauden-san, I presume? My name is Kikuno, and I am Mitsuru's head maid. If you would follow me, I shall bring you to the dance floor."

Leaving the mother and daughter (_Jesus Christ she's still laughing_) behind, I followed the maid into a long corridor. As we walked, I tried to figure out why Kikuno-san looked so familiar to me…

Clearing my throat to get the maid's attention, I asked: "Kikuno-san, I can't help but think we've met before. You were carrying Mitsuru-san's rapier during the Tokyo Tower meeting, right?"

"That is correct. I usually accompany Mitsuru-san in missions where violent conflicts are not completely necessary. I was also one of the ones pulled out of the coffins by you."

"Are you also a Persona-user?"

"No, but I have received training to function within the Dark Hour. Which is why it was extremely astonishing for me when I was suddenly pulled back into it."

"Really? That's interesting. How long has it been since you've last experienced the Dark Hour?"

"In reality, two days before the meeting. The Shadow Operatives have equipment that simulate the Dark Hour for training purposes. But even so, before the Tokyo Tower meeting, I have never experienced a single natural Dark Hour for 3 years. So of course you can imagine my surprise when I was pulled out of my coffin." I fell silent as I contemplated this new development.

'_Chicot, any thoughts on this?'_

'_Well, it is weird. What differs an artificial Dark Hour from a true one? Why can some Persona-users experience the Dark Hour while others can't? Or how did they lose their access to the Dark Hour?'_

'_Lose? You mean they could access it before?'_

'_I'm sure at least some of them could. After all, they know about it and can create it artificially. It would be too much of a longshot to imagine that they simply hypothesized and proved the existence of the Dark Hour. It's one of those things that are way too ludicrous to be simply imagined up and researched without any concrete evidence. Much more likely that they had prior access to it and lost it.'_

'_Assuming that you're right, that raises the question, why didn't we lose the ability?'_

'_Too less info, and too less time. Look, it seems like we're there.'_

Just as Chicot had pointed out, we arrived at what could be the dance floor. And to be honest, it qualified as a dance floor just as much as Mitsuru's limo qualified as a car. It was big enough to be a rugby field, and had the middle cleared out as a dance floor, where several people were already waltzing in. The sides of the hall was lined with long tables filled with platters of food and…..

_'Holy crap is that a soda fountain?!'_

_ 'Several soda fountains.' _Chicot corrected me, _'Our hostess is the head of the Kirijo Corps after all.'_

Kikuno, the maid, turned around and bowed to me again. "Here is the dance floor. Feel free to help yourself to any of the food that you see and socialize. Kirijo-san would be with you shortly." With that, she walked away, leaving me to idle around. Looking around, it doesn't seem like anyone's really paying me much attention, so I decided to walk to the soda fountains.

'_Huh. Might as well get something to drink. Let's see, what have we got here….. Coke, Fanta, Dr. Pepper…. Even V8? Who drinks that at a party?'_

_ 'Diehard health freaks? Or maybe Risette and Takeba. They do need to watch their calorie intakes for their jobs…'_

_ 'Okay, now that makes sense.' _Grabbing a glass from the side, I scooped a few pieces of ice from the ice bucket into the glass and filled it with Coke. I looked around while taking a sip. Several other people were also at the food table, and I recognized a familiar shadow somewhere at the corner of the dance hall.

_Adachi._

Before I can start walking in Adachi's direction, a voice rang up from behind me.

"Caius Gevauden, I presume?" I turned around and saw a man with silver hair behind me. I instantly recognized him as one of the Persona-users present in the Tokyo Tower meeting. He held out a hand to me.

"My name is Yu Narukami, pleased to meet you." As I shook his hand, I recalled Adachi mentioning his name when we were catching up in the bar a few days past.

"You were the leader of the group that captured Adachi, right? I think his pride still smarts a bit from being taken down by high school kids…." Narukami let out an embarrassed chuckle and scratched the back of his head.

"Ah, yeah that was me. Well to be fair he was killing people and trying to bring an end to the world, so we didn't really have any choice on the matter."

"Hey, why are you acting as though you're the bad guy in this case? He decided to give a stab at destroying the world, fucked up, and got his ass whooped. Such things happen, as with any other job that any other guy decides to pull. Nobody's blaming you, not even Adachi." Narukami looked at me with a slightly confused expression.

"Aren't you friends with Adachi-san? I thought that you might feel a bit annoyed that we brought your friend to jail."

"Nah. Adachi is my only surviving friend that I can contact easily, and I love wasting time with that guy over a bottle of whatever liquor we can get our hands on. But that doesn't mean I'm his caretaker. If he decides to try and pull a job only to end up biting off a bit more than he can chew, that's none of my business."

"Pull a job?"

"Eh, that's just how we referred to fulfilling a contract when I was back in Strega. Now I just use it to refer to any operation that's somewhat risky."

"Oh." Narukami paused for a second with a disturbed expression on his face. "But how can you forge meaningful bonds when you don't care about what happens to your friends? How can you make friends with others knowing that you would just shrug off their death later on?"

"Who said anything about shrugging off their death? How can a friend's death be simply shrugged off?" I turned and looked at Narukami in the eye. "Tell me this Narukami, have you ever lost anyone close to you before?" The silverette's eyes suddenly became a bit hollow, and he smiled a sad smile. I immediately backtracked.

"Oh, I'm sorry I mentioned that. It was a rhetorical question, I never meant for it to bring back bad memories…." Narukami waved a hand absentmindedly and closed his eyes for a bit. When he opened them again, the hollowness in his gaze was gone.

"Don't sweat it. I didn't lose someone, at least not permanently. There was just a time when I believed that a close family member has died because of my actions. She recovered remarkably, but the memory of that time still haunts me."

"Okay… well I'm glad that she's fine now then."

"Thank you. Why don't you- " before Narukami could finish his sentence, he was interrupted by a light cough. Both of us turned around to see a short blue haired woman dressed in a black dress. The dress' design was fairly conservative, but it still managed to how her curves and accentuate her beauty. And for some odd reason, I feel a bit of recognition when looking at this woman, yet I cannot remember where I've seen her before.

"Oh, hello Naoto. What did Rise want with you?" Narukami greeted the lady with a smile as he reached down and ruffled her hair. She let out a light growl of annoyance but otherwise made no attempt to stop him.

_'Wait…. Wait, he said Naoto. Naoto as in Naoto Shirogane? Shirogane's a lady?'_

_ 'Caius, the man downstairs is reporting for duty. He says that he is really confused with what is going on right now, and is requesting more blood to continue Operation: Mara.'_

_ 'Shut it Chicot, now's not the time for innuendos! Jesus Christ…'_ Running a hand through my hair, I looked up to find that my brief space-out has not gone unnoticed. Both Narukami and the lady was looking at me. I coughed awkwardly.

"Um, may I ask whether your surname happens to be Shirogane?" The lady blinked at me for a few seconds, looking confused while Narukami was almost shaking with silent laughter.

"Why, yes. My full name is Naoto Shirogane. I believe we have met in several occasions, and I was one of the two Shadow Operatives to first discover you, and whom you decided on the spot to try and murder." Her eyes narrowed at the last part, but I paid that no heed. Taking a deep breath, I rubbed my temples with a finger to try and clear my mind.

"Okay. I'm sorry but I always assumed that you were male, due to the way you dressed. And I must admit, seeing you in your current attire combined with my former misconception on your gender really confused me."

Narukami chuckled as a faint blush dusted Shirogane's cheeks.

"You aren't the first one. In fact, you took it really well compared to many of the others." Narukami informed me while ruffling Shirogane's hair again, eliciting another growl of annoyance. I smiled as I watched the couple fool around despite Shirogane's wariness around me.

_'Enjoying the romance Caius?' _Chicot nudged me mentally. I shook my head with a low chuckle.

_'Enjoying human interaction. You were right Chicot. I do need human interaction.'_

_ 'Heh. Be sure not to OD on the stuff. Been several years since you had such a concentrated dose.'_

_ 'Can we not talk about this as if it's a drug?'_

The clicking of heels broke through my thoughts. Turning around, I saw Mitsuru walking towards me alongside Akihiko. Narukami immediately stopped messing around with Shirogane and bowed slightly towards Mitsuru.

"No need to be so formal Narukami. This is a party after all. I trust you and Shirogane are getting along well with our newest recruit?"

"Yes of course we are." I let out a bark of laughter at Narukami's response, drawing the attention of all four Persona-users.

"Well, Narukami is getting along with me just fine. Shirogane, on the other hand, still can't get over the fact that I tried to kill her." Shirogane shot me a glare.

"Well, excuse me for not getting over my own attempted murder. I suppose that you would be much more generous to all of your would-be killers." She retorted, her voice dripping of sarcasm. I sipped my soda before answering.

"I have. More than once in fact. One thing you need to know about me is that I never hold grudges for long." I smiled at Shirogane's slightly shocked expression, before turning to Mitsuru. "But I assume you aren't here to listen to my life philosophy. I assume you are here to learn about Project Prometheus?"

"Yes, but first I'd like to gather everyone." Mitsuru turned around, lifted her glass and lightly tapped on it several times with a teaspoon she took from a table. It was surprisingly loud considering that it was just a class and a teaspoon. The hubbub of many conversations soon died down, and Mitsuru cleared her throat.

"Everyone, I have a brief announcement to make. There will be a meeting of all Shadow Operatives field agents in the second floor conference room in 5 minutes. All guests are kindly requested to remain here, and are welcome to all the accommodations in this room. Thank you." After her speech, there was a short flurry of movement as half of the people in the room started walking towards a giant hallway. Mitsuru beckoned at me and I followed her along with Shirogane and Narukami.

_'Nervous, Caius?'_

_ 'Hardly. Just recount my experiences, right? Not the first time I was subjected to experiments, so I'll be fine recounting them.'_

_ 'Um, the last time you were in the control group. And you didn't have nightmares about it afterwards.'_

_ 'Shut up. If I do have PTSD over it, I'm sure talking about it would be-' _Suddenly my line of thought was broken by something else.

_ I was in the hallway again, headed the double doors of Watanabe's office. A draft flow through the corridors as I walked, making the straps on my straitjacket swirl around me. I snarled impatiently as I quickened my pace towards my revenge…._

"Gevauden, are you alright?" Narukami's voice broke through my vision. Opening my eyes, I saw the four Persona-users looking at me. I was leaning heavily against the wall of the corridor, a thin film of sweat covering me head to toe. Standing back up again, I offered a strained smile to my companions.

"Nothing. Still a bit weak from the Tokyo Tower fight, that's all…" A patter of footsteps interrupted me, as another group of people ran up from where we came from. Risette and a girl with green hair were leading them. Rise saw as and skid to a halt, before bursting out:

"Senpai, Naoto-kun! Thank god you're alright!" Narukami and Shirogane looked at each other confusedly. Narukami decided to speak up:

"Um… thanks for your concern Rise, but what happened?"

"Fuuka-san and I detected a faint ripple of energy that felt like a Persona-summoning around where you are, so we thought that you were under attack!"

The girl with green hair, Fuuka, nodded.

"Yes, the energy emitted was identical to that which is released when a Persona is summoned. However, it was extremely faint. If it wasn't for the fact that Juno and Kouzeon were strengthened by exposure to the Dark Hour a few days ago, we wouldn't even have detected it. Even as it is, it barely registered under our radars…"

"Do you still detect it?" Mitsuru asked.

"No. Not anymore. It's just that it alarmed us a lot, but in hindsight, we might've overreacted. Hehehe…" Rise had an embarrassed grin on her face. "It might not have even been there…"

"No, it's fine. A false alarm is better than a miss. I want you two to keep a watchful eye out in case it happens again."

"Yes, Mitsuru-san." Rise and Fuuka answered simultaneously.

I frowned to myself as we resumed walking. Shirogane was looking at me thoughtfully.I had a feeling that she somehow connected my panic attack with the energy pulse. And she won't be wrong either.

_Dammit Watanabe. I killed you. That should've been the end of it… Dammit!_

Reaching our destination, Mitsuru opened a double door, revealing a lounge with several large armchairs and sofas placed in a circle. There was even a bar at the side, fully stocked with drinks.

"Okay everybody. Grab a drink and sit down. We have a long talk ahead of us." Following Mitsuru's advice, I poured myself a glass a whiskey and sat down on an armchair, sipping from the glass to steel my frayed nerves from the panic attack. Everyone else also grabbed their drinks and settled down comfortably. As expected, everyone's attention was on me. Mitsuru leant forward from the sofa she shared with Akihiko.

"Okay. I want you to tell us everything you know about the motives and methods of Project Prometheus, as well as the continued existence of the Dark Hour." I smiled wryly to myself and took a generous gulp of whiskey from my glass.

_Oh boy, this is going to be a looooong discussion…._

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Woohoo new chapter! Finals were tough, so as I predicted, I couldn't write at all during those two weeks. But I'm back now, so that's nice! And yes, I know that Caius would not be aware of Mara's existence, but I needed the joke, so just roll with it please! Now to respond to some of the reviews:

Guest Review: Thank you! And don't worry, I will patch that up somehow. I think it'll take a whole chapter, but it'll be done! And the Shadow Ops would shine once they're back in their comfort zone!

Satori: Glad I made your day! And what was that about commas?

Anyways, next chapter is what you've all been waiting for! The explanation of the Dark Hour!

PS: Please R&R.

PPS: Merry Christmas folks!


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: Do I have to? *sigh*, I only own the OC… Goddammit this is getting old…

* * *

><p>"What do you know about the methods and motives of Project Prometheus?" Mitsuru asked again, leaning forward. I leaned back and took a deep breath to calm myself.<p>

"Well, to put it in the simplest terms, they want to find a natural-born Persona-user and rip his Persona out. Then link that Persona to someone else." A series of gasps from the assembled Shadow Operatives can be heard from my statement. Even Mitsuru looked shocked.

"How-? Is that even possible? To tear out someone's Persona without it going completely berserk…." Kirijo muttered to herself.

"I would say no." Shirogane replied, her tone all professional. "Remember the P-1 Grand Prix? Sho had the help of Hi-no-kagutsuchi, a god that exceeded Izanami-no-mikoto in strength. Yet even he could not safely remove our Personas as a whole, which led to him chipping them away piece by piece instead." I raised an eyebrow, confused, and was about to ask what was going on. A hand rested on my shoulder, and I looked up to see Adachi.

"I'll fill you in later." He muttered.

"Hm…. Well, despite everything you guys just said, I would vouch that it is definitely possible. Mainly because I was the prime subject of the Tokyo branch, and…."

_The familiar sound of the switch being flicked, and I arched my back as pain filled my mind, my human screams mixing with Chicot's inhuman ones as the scientists on the control panel watched the readings and charts carefully._

"_Switch it off! He's going to die from the stress to early and all this will be for naught! He's the only test subject we have, we cannot afford to lose him yet!"_

_Another flick of the switch, and I collapsed back on the lab table, panting heavily…._

"… I can definitely feel that they only lack a few finer calibrations before they can successfully isolate somebody's Persona. They were saying something about me dying before they've completely isolated Chicot, so I'll bet that's the problem right now. Judging by the matter-of-fact way that they were speaking about it, me dying was also part of the plan…" My voice trailed off as I wiped a bead of sweat from my brow and took another sip of whiskey. I would hope that nobody noticed my little lapse into nightmare land, but Shirogane was scrutinizing me with too much intensity for my liking.

_'Relax Caius. There's no way she can know, and you got it under control before I was even affected. You're getting better at controlling this.'_

_ 'Chicot, one does not simply control nightmares and flashbacks. You and I should know that better than most.'_

_'True, true….'_

Mitsuru's voice brought me back to reality.

"But…. In this case it would be quite difficult to imagine them operating with only scientific backing. Even my grandfather and Ikutsuki had worked in accordance to an ancient prophecy for their own works on the Shadows…." I shook my head at Mitsuru's musings.

"Not quite. They have almost all they need from the Strega experiments. Since it seems to be obvious that none of you have had a close heart-to-heart with any Strega members, have any of you at least looked closely at the Kirijo Ergo Lab files pertaining to them?"

Shirogane cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention.

"I have read through the files on the Artificial Persona experiments shortly before our last operation in Inaba. It seems that artificial Personas are created by manipulating Shadows into stronger, more militarized forms and then trapping them in a tiny shard of the Plume of Dusk. Afterwards the shard is then implanted into a human host, therefore granting the human a 'Persona'. The human host can them theoretically call upon the Shadow as a Persona, yet because the untamed Shadows created this way are all very aggressive, they would try to kill their human hosts whenever possible. Thus the Ergo Lab developed suppressants for the human host to control their artificial Personas." I clapped lightly at Shirogane's speech, drawing everyone's attention to me again.

"Couldn't have said it better myself." I paused for a while, and then let out a chuckle. "Ah, who am I kidding? I actually didn't know that much about the creation process for artificial Persona-users either, except for the fact that members of Strega all had something physical implanted into them around the solar plexus. Anyway…" I stopped after noticing that the guy with a baseball cap had his hand up. Mitsuru sighed.

"What is it on your mind Iori?" The man lowered his hand and scratched the back of his head while chuckling.

"You know you can just call me Junpei, Mitsuru-san. Anyways, a lot of that was way over my head, but isn't the Plume of Dusk also implanted in Aigis, Labrys, and that Sho guy? But none of them seem to have similar Persona problems, unless Sho was just good at hiding it…." His voice trailing off, Junpei looked at Adachi, who shook his head.

"No. As long as I was working with him Sho never took any suppressants or anything. And plus, it wasn't his Persona that was out of control, it was his persona….lity." Adachi answered, chuckling at his own lame pun. "Shit, that was bad. Sho really rubbed off on me…"

"Srnk…." A low snort of laughter came from the back of the room. Yukiko was holding both hands to her mouth and shaking slightly. The brunette on her right who was wearing a green cocktail dress rolled her eyes.

"There she goes again… I better take her outside before she completely blows up. I swear her threshold for this kind of thing just gets lower and lower as she gets older…."

"I think the three glasses of wine I saw her drink on the dance floor contributed to that as well…" Fuuka mentioned. The brunette face-palmed.

"Oh, so on top of all that she's DRUNK as well? Now I've got to take her outside before she starts shouting for the King's Game." Standing up, she took Yukiko by the hand and started hurrying her to the door. "Yosuke, catch me up on speed later, okay?"

"Alright. Thanks Chie!" A headphone clad boy, Yosuke, gave Chie a thumbs up as the two friends left the room. Right before the door closed, Yukiko finally lost control.

"Srnk…. Hahahahahaha…!"

And then the door clicked shut and the laughter was blocked out. I turned to Mitsuru.

"Well…. That was that… I must say that I'm really impressed by the sound insulation of this room." Mitsuru gave a wry smile.

"Yes. It would be impractical to leave the daily upkeep of this place to only those who know about Shadows, so I have made several conference rooms where the Shadow Operatives can speak freely. But we've went off topic. I believe Iori asked a question?" Shirogane answered quickly:

"Yes, he was asking why the Anti-Shadow Suppression weapons and Sho didn't encounter the same fate as the artificial Persona-users. The key is the size of the Plume of Dusk and the nature of the host. Neither Aigis nor Labrys are biologically human, and thus before their Plume of Dusk implantation, they would have no personality. In a way, their current forms which we see are merely vessels for their actual form, namely a Plume of Dusk." The golden haired robot, Aigis nodded in consent.

"That is mostly correct. The bodies of me and my sister serve the primary function of expressing the personality held within the Plume of Dusk and also have a built in evoker for summoning our Personas."

"So that means we can technically switch your Plume of Dusk into another body and you'll still be Aigis?" Junpei asked eagerly.

"No. This body also provided the memory storage function and many other functions that are gained from my experiences. If you moved the memory module and Plume of Dusk alone into another body, there would be no guarantees whether I would still be me when I wake up in my new body."

"Oh….." Junpei leaned back, looking slightly disappointed.

"Jeez Stupei, you can't just ask someone if they can change bodies!" Takeba smacked Junpei on the back of his head while berating him.

"Ow! Hey, I resent that!" Shirogane cleared her throat again, this time visibly impatient. Narukami placed an arm around her shoulder, and she relaxed a bit before resuming her lecture.

"My point is, the Anti-Shadow Suppression weapons cannot be compared to the artificial Persona-users. Sho apparently have had a full Plume of Dusk implanted, similar to Aigis and Labrys, and this resulted in the development of a Persona and a second personality referred to as Minazuki. As I understand it, an implantation this way would not endanger the host physically and would not require suppressants.

"In the case with the artificial Persona-users, however, the size of the Plume of Dusks implanted were too small to have a personality within. They were only used as containers for malicious and militarized Shadows, and thus the host would need the suppressants in order to keep the Shadows under control." Shirogane finished her tirade and started massaging her temple with her fingers. Her face held an exasperated expression, while the silverette beside her seemed to be barely holding back laughter. I cleared my throat.

"Okay, so now for why I brought up the subject of Strega. The Strega experiments should prove that Project Prometheus, claiming to be formerly from the Kirijo Ergo Labs, have all the technology required to 'transplant' a Persona. The only thing they still need, and the only thing they are still working on, is-"

"The extraction of natural Personas." Mitsuru muttered to herself. "One of the reasons why the idea of Artificial Persona-users were ditched was because the militarized Shadows they used were still fundamentally wild and malicious. Even with suppressants, they would rip most human hosts apart in a matter of days, if not hours. A Persona, on the other hand, is a tamed and trained Shadow, so if they manage to finalize the extraction process…"

"They can then steal the Personas of others and place them into loyal soldiers. Or maybe just keep the Persona isolated and study it." I finished for her. "As far as I can tell, that would be the end goal of Project Prometheus. Although I do admit, it sounds like a mean to a further end…."

"That would be enough for now. We found files pertaining to Project Prometheus in one of the old Ergonomics files, and suspected that it was not going to be pleasant. Now we know that for sure. Eliminating Project Prometheus would now be one of our top priorities." Mitsuru declared with a determined look on her face. The rest of the Shadow Operatives nodded in confirmation of her command.

The door clicked as Chie and Yukiko (who seemed to be all laughed out) returned to the room and got back to their seats. Yosuke leaned over to give them a hushed recap as Mitsuru returned her attention to me.

"That was half of our inquiry. The other half pertains to the reappearance of the Dark Hour. What do you know about that?"

"Reappearance?" I repeated dully. "Why do you say 'reappearance'? As far as I know it never disappeared in the first place. Did something happen to make you think that it has disappeared?" My question drew the surprised looks from a lot of the Shadow Operatives. I raised an eyebrow.

"What? Did I say something weird?"

"We…. Haven't destroyed the Dark Hour at all..?" Junpei seemed to be too stunned to formulate an actual sentence.

"You've got to be kidding me…. I thought it was bad enough that it reappeared, but the fact that it never disappeared in the first place…." Takeba also seemed too stunned for words. I sighed, exasperated.

"Uh, I'm totally in the dark here. What's going on again? You guys do know that I escaped your custody via the Dark Hour right? So why so shocked by its existence?"

"Oh, forgive us…" Even Mitsuru seemed to be at a loss of words, but she quickly recovered. "It's just that most of us have spent the last 3 years under the impression that we brought an end to the Dark Hour, and that has been a point of pride for our organization. Having you just simply refute that in a simple sentence is… unnerving at best."

"Okay… I get the emotional whiplash part. But make no mistake, I've never missed out on a single Dark Hour since Chicot manifested 10 years ago. I'm not sure what you did, but it sure as hell didn't influence the Dark Hour itself. By the way, what did you do 3 years ago?"

"Long story short, we destroyed Tartarus." Akihiko filled in.

"Oh…. Yeah, if you managed to pull off something like that and then stop experiencing the Dark Hour, it would create the impression that you have ended the Dark Hour. But seriously, have your guys ever found any proof that the Dark Hour and Tartarus are connected in that way?"

"What do you mean? Tartarus only appeared during the Dark Hour. Isn't that a clear connection?" A kid who looked like he was in middle school asked, while a white dog on his lap looked at me inquiringly. "I'm Ken Amada by the way. And this is Koromaru. We're both Persona-users." I blinked dumbly at that statement, and then stared at Kormaru for a bit.

"A dog…. Using a Persona…. And part of a top secret Anti-Shadow organization…. Okay. I'm just going to ignore the total lack of logic in the last statement and just accept things as they are…" Shaking my head, I answered Ken's question.

"Yes, Tartarus only appeared during the Dark Hour. But you should know that Tartarus is only a building. A building teeming with Shadows and magic, but a building nevertheless. While the Dark Hour is more like a location in time and space. They are not exactly connected on a two way street…." Seeing that nobody seemed to get me, I racked my mind for a better way to explain.

"Let's see… um… try this metaphor: You all know the Eiffel Tower right? It's in Paris, and it's the landmark there. If you see the Eiffel Tower standing around, you know you're in Paris. And if you're in Paris, you'll expect to see the Eiffel Tower. They're connected that way. You all following?" I waited for everyone to nod in confirmation, then continued.

"But let's just say that one day, some people bombed the Eiffel Tower. It's gone, reduced to nothingness. There is no more Eiffel Tower. But that doesn't mean that the city of Paris also ceases to exist. It would just exist without the Eiffel Tower. You see what I'm getting at?" I saw understanding dawn upon the faces of several of the Shadow Operatives, but I decided to state the obvious, just in case.

"So what I'm saying is, you guys destroying Tartarus and believing that the Dark Hour doesn't exist anymore makes just as much sense as a guy bombing up the Eiffel Tower and believing that Paris no longer exists anymore. Harsh, but true." I heard a chuckle behind me, and turned around to see Adachi covering his mouth in one hand and holding his stomach with the other, basically shaking with laughter. Shrugging to myself, I turned back to see the Shadow Operatives looking at each other uncomfortably. Fuuka then turned around and addressed me:

"While that does explain the continued existence of the Dark Hour, it does not explain why we cannot experience it anymore. Any chance you have an answer for that?"

"Well, here's a thought." Adachi, who have somehow managed to choke down his laughter, cut in. "I do not have a lot of experience with this Dark Hour thing, but it sounds a lot like the TV world to me. And if there's one thing I'm sure of, the TV world has its own mind. So if this Dark Hour thing is the same as the TV world, wouldn't it make sense that it will kick you out if you mess shit up in it? I mean, working on the metaphor that Caius just used, I don't think France would be let you back in its boarders if you just randomly bombed the Eiffel Tower…."

"No, the Dark Hour is not as sentient as that… it seems to be not as in tune with the human psyche as the TV world, if what you told me about it is true. My guess is that you guys blocked yourselves from assessing the Dark Hour. Either out of belief or trauma, like how people repress memories that they don't like. Is there anything that might cause that?"

"Ugh… too many to count… especially after…" Junpei fell silent, as did half of the Shadow Operatives. Their eyes suddenly seemed to be filled with a hollow pain, similar to what I saw in Narukami's eyes when I asked him if he ever lost someone.

"You lost someone to the Dark Hour, didn't you? In the act of destroying Tartarus, you all lost a loved one… or maybe several…." I muttered softly. Mitsuru nodded, and looked up, her eyes awfully red.

"We lost two of our numbers in our quest to destroy Tartarus. One was an old friend to Akihiko and I, while the other was our field leader. The latter was an extremely powerful Persona-user, with a skill similar to that of Narukami…. He sacrificed himself to stop the end of the world…." I nodded gravely.

"I'm sorry for bringing bad memories up. My consolidations. But that would explain why you lost your access to the Dark Hour. For you that place holds too many terrible memories of friends loved and lost. Once you've accomplished your mission there, namely the destruction of Tartarus, you lost the subconscious will to remain in the Dark Hour. Similar to how some students during finals would keep their bodies healthy and functional through sheer willpower, and then collapse into a week of sickness right after the test.

"As for me, the Dark Hour actually holds many fond memories of me hanging out with the rest of Strega. It was our playground, where we can do as we please and get money out of it as well. Of course there were some bad memories mixed in as well, but for me the Dark Hour is held in a significantly more positive light than for you. Which would explain why I never lost touch with it." A hand flew up from the back. Looking over, I saw Chie holding her hand up.

"Question! Why can't any of the IT access the Dark Hour? At all?"

"IT?" I repeated confusedly. Adachi grinned.

"It's short for Investigation Team. That's the name of their ragtag group that stopped the end of the world." Chie looked ready to yell at Adachi, but I cut her off before she started.

"Oh, I guess that also has to do with location. All of us who could originally access the Dark Hour was either on Port Island during the explosion, or lived there for an extended amount of time after the explosion. That might have something to do with it. But that's not important right now. For at least half of you, I already shattered your coffins. That means you would be able to access the Dark Hour permanently. Period. I do believe that this would be more helpful to your Shadow related work?"

Some of the Shadow Operatives looked less than pleased with my statement that they would have access to the Dark Hour permanently, but Mitsuru nodded at my statement.

"Yes, that is true. I believe we have learned quite a lot right now thanks to you. There is much to think about, from Project Prometheus to the Dark Hour. I suppose we can call this meeting to an end.

"Tomorrow we will meet again at noon and formulate a patrol schedule for the Dark Hour. Since we now know of its continued existence, it would be prudent for us to limit Shadow attacks during the Dark Hour to a minimum. I believe you have been fulfilling that role in the past, Gevauden?" I smiled.

"I wouldn't call it patrolling. More like just wandering and having fun. But yeah, I do save a few pedestrians every now and then."

"Then you have experience in the matter. Would it be too much to ask that you accompany every squad for one week for orientation purposes? After that you can just settle in one of the squads."

"Sure. That's what you pay me for, right?"

"Fine. I will see you tomorrow, and I look forward to working with you, Mercenary."

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: To all of my loyal readers: what you've all been waiting for! And asking for! Hope you're happy with it, and please R&R!

PS: Thanks for the encouraging reviews! (wink, wink, Cyan)


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: Yadda yadda yadda…. You get the drill don't you? (PS: I only own the OC)

* * *

><p>"Take this!" Jumpei swung his spiked bat around, it struck a Gigas and sent it stumbling back. "Home run!"<p>

As the Shadow regained its footing, it saw Chie running towards it with murder in her eyes. The Gigas quickly started some form of evasive maneuver, but soon screamed in pain as a couple of arrows suddenly sprouted from its feet and legs, pinning the Shadow to the ground. From the backlines Yukari waved cheerfully at the Gigas with a smirk on her face.

"Hiiiiiiiiiyah!" As Chie yelled, her legs swung out and she violently push kicked the Gigas on the chest, completely unbalancing it and sending it tumbling back into five other Shadows. Her friend Yukiko appeared immediately by her side and glared at the group of Shadows in front of her with her evoker posed elegantly against her temple. I raised an eyebrow.

'_I didn't even know you could be elegant while trying to shoot yourself.'_

'_Heh, the Shadow Operatives are a group with many talents…' _Chicot remarked to me, chuckling.

As we were talking, Yukiko had pulled the trigger. As the blue glow of summoning aura surrounded her, she pointed towards the Shadows.

"Turn to scarlet! **Burning Petals**!" The golden figure waved her katana in the direction of the Shadows, and a fiery lotus started to bloom within the circle of Shadows, incinerating them all. I sighed and drew my evoker.

"Chicot, you know the drill! **Mabufudyne**!"

Massive blocks of ice appeared around the dying group of Shadows as the giant flower within started to glow. Just as the last ice block fell in place, Yukiko's powerful spell finally went nova.

With a giant roar that sent a small tremor along the ground, the spell exploded, slightly cracking the walls of ice surrounding it. With the four directions blocked, the spell turned into a fiery pillar that shot straight up towards the sky, surrounded by a thick veil of steam caused by the ice sublimating from the heat. All of us turned our eyes away from the blinding light of the spell.

When all had died own, a smoking pile of soot and a few rapidly melting patches of snow was all that was left at the site of the explosion. Shaking my head to myself, I walked over and placed a hand on Yukiko's shoulder, grabbing her attention.

"If I didn't do that, we would've been the only things left standing in a half-block radius. C'mon, I've heard from Adachi what you could do, so you don't have to prove your strength or anything. Just show a little bit of self-restraint."

"Sorry…" Yukiko mumbled, her eyes downcast.

It was two days since my report to the Shadow Operatives about Project Prometheus and the Dark Hour, and I was on patrol with Yukiko, Chie, Yukari and Junpei. The last night I was with Mitsuru, Akihiko, Ken, and Koromaru. It went surprisingly well, with Mitsuru and Akihiko mastering control over –la level spells. Ken and Koromaru was still a bit shaky on that, but they usually fell back on the Hama/Mudo combo, which couldn't cause collateral damage in the first place. With this group though, I'm having a bit less luck….

"Huh. Well, you can practice as you go." I reassured Yukiko, shrugging. "For now, just stick to spells like Agilao and Maragion for offense purposes. Don't use any of the –dyne spells." Chie immediately jumped to her friend's defense in the face of my "sanctions".

"You can't ask that of Yukiko, right? I mean, her Persona is completely spell based! If you handicap her in her spell usage, you're really tying her hands up in a fight!"

"Yes, I can ask that of her. I'm not forbidding her from casting spells, I'm just asking that she practice control with the weaker spells, which is easier to control and would cause less damage if she does lose control." I looked around at our surroundings. We were in one of the more crowded parts of Tokyo. "In fact, with our surroundings and your general inexperience with controlling your spells, it would be best if we all didn't use any -dyne spells at all unless we are confident of completely avoiding collateral damage."

"Hey, that might be a bit too much." Yukari's voice came from behind me. She was looking at me in annoyance. "I think you've kinda forgot about it, but Yukiko's not the only one with a spell-oriented Persona. The damage I can do with these arrows are limited, so while you might be able to conjure some fancy hack-and-slash from your Persona to kill all Shadows at once, the rest of us have to kill them one by one without spells."

"When did I ever say my Persona was physical-oriented?" I interjected. "It's every bit as spell-oriented as yours and Amagi's. There is not a single physical skill in Chicot's arsenal." I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose. "Look, I am not asking you guys to not use spells. Just don't use powerful offense spells yet. And for your information it is completely possible to defeat a group of Shadows using only passive abilities, and that would be the surest way to fight Shadows without collateral damage before you learn absolute control-"

"Hey, since you're such a know-it-all, why don't you demonstrate?" Junpei sneered at me. I raised an eyebrow. That guy really didn't like me, and he didn't hide it. "Next time we meet some Shadows, why don't you take 'em on without using any spells?"

'_Yo, Caius, Shadow at 3 o'clock.' _Chicot alerted me, as if it was his cue. I turned around and saw a Gigas, a King, and three Tiaras rounding the corner to our little group. I looked back at Junpei and scowled.

"You know what? I might just do that."

Ignoring the slightly shocked looks from the Shadow Operatives, I hefted my Lupara and started jogging towards the group of Shadows. As I got closer, the Gigas noticed me and started to turn in my direction. I sped up, sprinting at full speed towards the Gigas while the Shadow swung its giant fist at me.

I leant back at the last minute, sliding between the Shadow's legs as its fist swung harmlessly above me. Pointing the Lupara upwards, I unloaded both barrels into the Shadow's torso, sending it falling backwards screaming.

Sitting up, I rammed the weighted butt of the shotgun into the downed Shadow's face, feeling something crack under the blow. The Gigas went limp and bubbled into muk. I stood up, and ducked just in time to dodge a few Agi spells thrown my way by the Tiaras. The King was raising its scepter in preparation for a summoning.

_Oh no you don't!_

Drawing out my stiletto, I snapped my arm straight, sending the dagger flying in a silver arc straight between the King's eyes. The Shadow dropped its scepter and reeled back, screaming in pain. I broke open the Lupara and poured out the empty shells, about to load in new ones. Then I felt the heat of an Agi spell flying straight towards my face.

_Shit. _

Without thinking, I lifted the shotgun and barely blocked the spell with it, the force of the fireball sending the gun flying out of my grasp. I reached for my evoker, and then stopped.

'_If I use a spell here, I'll never live it down in front of these guys….'_

'_Is this the moment for that Caius?!' _Chicot screeched at me.

Ignoring Chicot, I opted for a summersault over the next few Agi spells and landed right in front of the King, who was still clutching his head in pain. I grabbed the ivory handle protruding out from his skull.

"Thanks for holding on to it, I'll be taking this back."

Pulling the dagger out of the Shadow, I casually slit its throat at the same time. The King screamed, and disintegrated. Behind it, the Tiaras had finished readying their next spell. I threw myself to the side, barely avoiding the fireballs as I hurled the dagger into one of the Tiaras, killing the Shadow. I landed heavily on my side only to find the two remaining Tiaras staring at me. Seconds later, two streaks of fire was headed straight to me. I quickly drew my evoker and pointed it at my temple.

_Shit, I'm not gonna make it-!_

Suddenly, a figure of gold obscured my view, expanding its wings to completely shield me. While Yukiko's Persona absorbed the fire spells meant for me, an arrow sprouted from the head of one of the Tiaras, and a green blur rushed towards the second one and finished it with a well-timed kick.

"Geez, did you have to act all macho like that?" Chie muttered as she walked towards me and put her hands on her hips. I took a few deep breathes to steady my heartbeat, and then chuckled.

"Yeah, you're right. I went in with my fists cocked and almost got my butt kicked. Ah well…" I felt a light tap on my shoulder, and saw Yukiko holding out my shotgun, now slightly charred. I took it gratefully, and Chie handed me my dagger that she found in the dead Shadows.

"What was that about defeating Shadows with only passive skills again?" Junpei snickered behind me. I turned around and raised an eyebrow at him.

"Okay. I screwed up and needed someone to save my butt. That's fine. We all do that now and then." I looked at Junpei sideways. "Have you never relied upon others? Aren't you supposed to be the good guys who are all about 'bonds' and stuff?" Junpei snorted angrily and turned away. I frowned at his back, but Chie grabbed my attention again.

"Even though you didn't manage to kill them all, you still managed to kill three of them without even summoning your Persona! How did you do that?"

"Hehe, to be honest, I kinda cheated… Chicot has no offensive physical skills, but he does have Angelic Grace, which makes it easier for me to dodge most forms of spell attacks. But the dodging the physical attacks were all me. That's just basic reflexes combined with experience, and you can get that at any dojo, or even just sparring against someone for an extended amount of time." I looked down at Chie's legs, which were covered in iron shin guards. "In fact, if you weren't throwing in all your weight with your kicks, I bet you could do just as well if not better." Chie looked slightly confused.

"Wait, why can't I put all my weight in my kicks? That gives them maximum power!" I nodded patiently.

"Yes that does give you maximum power, but it also leaves you completely open for counterattacks. Your kicks pretty much sends your whole body hurtling against your opponent, and against anything human, or even some weak shadows, you won't have to worry since they won't live long enough to counter. But once you're facing a group of Shadows, or one of those huge Tanks, you've got to cut back and throw weaker and more controlled kicks just so you can dodge or block and counters they throw at you. But that's just advice from me, and you could do a lot better talking to any martial arts instructor." Chie nodded at my advice, a small grin forming on her lips.

'_She might already be formulating new moves in her mind already. Dam that girl is dangerous.' _Chicot remarked in my head. I grinned mentally at him.

'_If Adachi is to be believed, she's part of a group that slayed a God. Let's face it Chicot, all of the Shadow Operatives we've met so far are capable of unleashing the destructive force worthy of a natural disaster.'_

'_But then again, anyone with a –dyne spell and enough mana could do that.'_

'_True.'_ A tap on my shoulder brought me back to reality. It was Yukiko.

"I-I'm sorry, but can you give me a few pointers on how to control my spells?"

"Hm? Didn't I tell you to just use –la level spells for now? If you're capable of channeling a full Agidyne through your psyche, you should be more than capable of some amount of finer control over weaker versions of the spell."

"Yes, but I've just never had to purposely attack with control before. It's either been a full on attack, or I would just refuse to attack…"

"Wha-? Yukiko I remember you throwing some Agidynes at me during the P-1 Grand Prix!" Chie suddenly exclaimed, "You don't mean that you…" Yukiko covered her face in embarrassment.

"I-I was angry and confused by the things that I was hearing from the fake you, Chie! And before I knew it flames were coming out! I'm sorry Chie!" Chie sighed in exasperation. I shrugged.

"Well, if it is some practice that you want, there are drills you can do." Yukiko's eyes lit up, and I saw Chie, Yukari, and even Junpei look at me with interest. "So the first thing you would need to master is to focus your spells on empty space. I guess up until now all your spells have been focused on some sort of opponent, right?" Yukiko nods. I started walking towards a slightly open space in the middle of the street. "So the first thing you can try to do, and believe me this doubles as a defensive maneuver, is to focus on only the immediate area surrounding you, and nothing more."

Drawing my evoker and pointing it firmly against the bottom of my chin, I took a deep breathe, and let the air come out between my teeth as a hiss. My finger tightened on the trigger.

"**Mabufu**!" Chicot materialized behind me and waved his hand. Around me eight ice shards materialized and enlarged until I was surrounded by a waist high wall of ice. I snapped my fingers and the wall shattered. "So what I did was imagine that there were eight targets surrounding me. That way, the spell would hit eight points around me and join up into one wall surrounding me. This is a weak version. If I use a –dyne level spell with the same technique, I would be able to construct something like an igloo around myself."

"Um... is that what you did earlier to restrain my fire spell?"

"Pretty much. If you can create a fire wall around you without burning yourself, you would at least know how it feels to control your spells…" As my voice trailed off, Yukiko eagerly pulled out her evoker and pointed it towards her temple.

"**Maragion**!" At her command, her Persona appeared and waved her katana.

A concentrated blast of fire, with Yukiko at the center, hit me straight in the face and sent me flying. Slamming my back against a brick wall, I collapsed and gasped for breath. Looking up, I saw that apart from Junpei, the rest of the Shadow Operatives were in a similar state of disarray. Yukiko stood at the middle of the blast, looking at all of us with a mortified expression.

"I'm sorry! Here, **Mediarahan**!" I felt a healing wave wash over me, and got up from the ground. Yukiko was rushing around bowing and apologizing repeatedly to the various people getting up. I chuckled and cleared my throat.

"Yeah, maybe I should've told you to keep your distance from others when you practice. And use Agi spells for practicing. This is a drill of control, and not power, so let's just start from the weakest spells."

Looking at the others nervously, Yukiko backed off to give everyone a wide berth before pointing the evoker to her head again. She let out a squeak of surprise when a tiny explosion occurred right where she was standing, engulfing her in flames once more. Shrugging to herself, Chie also found some space and pulled out her evoker, and Yukari soon followed. Junpei, however, gave me a sullen look and turned away. I raised an eyebrow at that.

'_What's his deal?'_

'_Don't know. Wasn't he the one that yelled at you and blamed you for Chidori's death when you first met the Shadow Ops?'_

'_Oh yeah. That was him. Hmmm….'_

Walking over, I tapped Junpei on the shoulder. He looked at me, scoffed, and turned away from me.

"What do you want?" I shrugged to myself.

"Well, since you didn't seem interested in practicing, and you certainly don't seem to have anything else to do at this moment, I thought that maybe we could talk."

"What's there to say with a murderer like you?" Junpei spat. I put both hands over my chest and made a mock expression of hurt. Then I chuckled.

"Ouch. That's gotta leave a mark, hehehe… But murderer or not, I'm still quite human. And there is something that I've been curious about, and now you seem to be the only one with the free time to answer me…" Junpei glanced at me and grunted. I took that as a sign to continue.

"How did they all die?" I asked softly. Junpei turned around and stared at me in surprise. I smiled sadly and asked again: "Strega. How did the rest of Strega die? I know you don't like me, and I freely admit to being a murderer, but I think I at least have the right to know how my closest friends died." Junpei shifted uncomfortably, and then he cleared his throat.

"Jin tried to stop us from ascending Tartarus. After he was defeated, we got surrounded by Shadows. He won't let us carry him with us, so we left him behind. We heard an explosion shortly after, so I guess he blew himself up."

"He did, didn't he?" I chucked softly, "Hehehe… he was always talking about going out with a bang. I guess, in a way, he got his wish. Did he die before Takaya? I really couldn't imagine anyone getting to Takaya without stepping over Jin's limp body first."

"Yes. Takaya was waiting for us on the next floor. We beat him down and moved on, and we saw him alive and awake for a bit after that. But I think he was still in Tartarus when it collapsed. We never found his body."

"How like him. To just disappear from the face of this world." I leant back and reminisced for a brief moment. Then I turned back to Junpei. "I believe we are one Strega member short."

"Chidori…. She… She….." To my surprise, Junpei started shaking a bit, and a trail of tears slowly snaked its way down his face. "She died saving me…."

"She saved you…?!" I trailed off in surprise.

_Is that even possible? It goes against what she, and all of Strega, believed in for so many years! What could cause her to save a member of the Shadow Operatives?! Unless… unless…._

"You two were in love, weren't you…" I muttered softly as the realization hit me. "She grew to care for someone that was not from Strega…" Junpei nodded, too choked up to speak. I leant back, to shocked by this revelation to say anything more. Beside me, Junpei slowly regained control of his emotions.

"I was trying to save her from Strega, to get her to join our side. I almost had it as well. But Takaya, he shot me in the gut. And she saved me. And died in the process." Junpei looked at his evoker grimly. I looked at his eyes.

_Yes, those are the eyes of one who knows loss… _

"I never knew about your relationship with her. I would never have brought her up otherwise. My apologies." I took a deep breath and released it with a hiss. "Of the three artificial Persona-users, she was the one fullest of life. I have known her as a sweet girl back before the clutches of despair got to her, and before I left the rest of Strega I have been trying, and failing, to get her to regain hope. I am grateful to you, Junpei Iori, for letting her know love again, even for a brief while." I looked up at the Green Moon that watched over us during the Dark Hour.

_Are you watching me now, Strega? Have you went somewhere where death no longer looms over your shoulder all your life? Have you finally found…. Peace? _

"**Maragi**! Yes! I finally did it!" Yukiko's voice cut through my musing, and I turned around alongside everyone else to see her proudly standing within a circle of flickering flames. Shrugging to myself, I chuckled while initiating a small round of applause for the Priestess.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Happy New Year! Yay! Character development! Also yay! The next two chapters would also be more devoted to Caius interacting with the Shadow Ops. So if you guys have any special requests, leave it in a review or PM me! I'll try to go with the majority vote. Okay then, please R&R!

PS: First time I posted this shit went wrong. So I'm reposting it. Hopefully this works...


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC…

* * *

><p>"What? Are you serious? Hahahahaha…" I doubled over the bar table laughing, with Adachi laughing alongside me. Still chuckling under his breath, the former detective wiped a tear from his eye before continuing:<p>

"And you know what the craziest thing was? I had to specifically say the words "Persona Fragments" before they even realized that their Personas were being chipped away at! I mean, how dense can you get?! It was like me pointing at them and saying 'Hey bro, that's a lot of blood you're losing there', and they're all like 'Oh, crap, have I been getting cut all this time?!' Dam, babysitting those kids are a pain…" He reached over for his glass, which was empty. Looking over to me, he tapped his empty glass. I gestured towards the bottle of whiskey at the side.

"Fill it yourself. C'mon, you've got hands. Use 'em." Adachi scowled and poured himself another glass. I chuckled at his expression. "Dam, I vouched my honor to get you out of Mitsuru's grasp for a little get together, and I buy you whiskey, and then you get mad at me for not pouring you a new cup. Tohru Adachi, you are a hard man to please…" Adachi paused for a second, my words bouncing around in his befuddled mind, and then started chuckling as well.

"Well, well, well, what do you know? You might be right about that… Hahaha…" Taking a drink from my glass, I propped my chin up with my arm, feeling the alcohol take effect.

"Hehehehe…. Back to the babysitting, I totally get what you're saying. You know how many times that Yukiko chick blew herself, and me, up before she learned how to make a flame wall? I mean, how on earth do you learn spells and not know how to control them? That's like learning how to dive before you learn how to swim! And don't even get me started on that Hanamura kid… Dam kid sped himself up and slashed up 20 Shadows in a row, only to focus so much on gloating that he crashed straight into that…. Bear-thing." Hearing that, Adachi broke down in a laughing fit again, and I soon joined in.

We were in Saitou's bar, having a little get-together. After a week of patrolling the streets for the Shadow Operatives, I requested a temporary release of Adachi so that we can drink together like old times. To my surprise, Mitsuru agreed to my request with the only stipulation being that I am accountable for both our actions. But I wouldn't be surprised if she has Fuuka or Rise keep an eye on us for all evening.

"Yep, sounds like that brat… What a bunch of losers…" Adachi snorted before downing his glass. I looked at him sideways, grinning.

"But that kinda begs the question… How were you defeated by a bunch of 'losers' like them?" Adachi looked up from his glass and glared at me.

"Swarm tactics. They had seven combat members, and one support member. I just had me. You do the math."

"But weren't you 'guided by the gods', and 'favored by that world'? I mean, from what I hear you had your own realm within that TV world. Couldn't you have just sealed them out?"

"Shaddup!" Adachi slurred, raising a hand in an attempt to backhand me. I easily blocked the half-hearted blow. "They had Narukami, who had his own gods backing him. Have you seen that kid in action? He switches Personas faster than we switch TV channels!" Reaching to pour himself another glass, he found the bottle empty. "An' we're outta booze."

"Way to switch the topic, detective."

"We're still outta booze…"

Sighing, I waved at Saitou and ordered a new bottle. As the bartender set the new bottle of whiskey down, I poured a glass for the drunken detective. He immediately drained half of it.

"Woah there, detective. I don't want to deal with you having alcohol poisoning."

"Heh, you might be the only one who'll really mind." The detective muttered to himself. The two of us sat in depressing silent for a while after that comment. "You and Narukami. Maybe Dojima as well…"

"Both Dojimas?" I asked. Adachi froze. I continued, too drunk to notice his change in demeanor. "You were always good with kids Adachi. Better with them then you'd admit to, and I'll be dammed if you didn't manage to get along with the young Nanako…" A heavy hand landed on my shoulder, and I spun around to see the detective grasping my shoulder in an iron tight grasp. He was shaking with emotion. Was it anger? Or sadness?

"Don't… don't talk about her anymore… Get along? Sure I got along with her… But I… I don't deserve any of her compassion…. How could I? After all I did to her…"

I stared at the drunk detective, too shocked to say anything. Adachi always held his time in Inaba with pride and reveled in the chaos he created. So why would he be so torn up about the younger Dojima? I mean, sure she was swept into the whole mess, but… My eyes widened as a week old memory returned to my befuddled mind:

_"Tell me this Narukami, have you ever lost anyone close to you before?" The silverette's eyes suddenly became a bit hollow, and he smiled a sad smile. I immediately backtracked._

_ "Oh, I'm sorry I mentioned that. It was a rhetorical question, I never meant for it to bring back bad memories…." Narukami waved a hand absentmindedly and closed his eyes for a bit. When he opened them again, the hollowness in his gaze was gone. _

_ "Don't sweat it. I didn't lose someone, at least not permanently. There was just a time when I believed that a close family member has died because of my actions. She recovered remarkably, but the memory of that time still haunts me…."_

"So is that it then?" I murmured softly. "Your game of cat and mouse somehow pulled Nanako Dojima into its crosshairs, and she went for a field trip with Death because of that?" Adachi nodded, too choked up to speak. I leant back and took another drink of whiskey. Adachi started speaking in a halting voice next to me.

"When… when I saw her image upon the TV, my joy in the game was drained for the first time… I almost dived into the TV right there and then to save her myself. But that… that would bring my game to an end, now wouldn't it? Hahaha… So I remained on standby. And I convinced myself that it didn't matter, that once she grew up she would lose her innocence just like countless other bitches…"

"But you never truly did convince yourself, did you?" The detective shook his head at my observations, and drained another glass. "So that's why you put so much effort into convicting Nametame… Not just to cover your ass, but also as your form of revenge… "

"We're still human aren't we? The will to love and hate. The will to create and destroy. The will to punish and protect. It's basically what drives us all, even us cold-blooded killers."

"I guess you're right about that… Hehehe, for all your talk of the ridiculousness of bonds Adachi, you still bonded with Narukami, Dojima, and that Nanako kid while you were an active serial killer…"

"Yep. And strangely, those bonds didn't break, even after I tore off my mask. What a hypocrite I turned out to be…" Chuckling slightly, Adachi lifted the glass to his mouth again, but paused, frowning at the glass.

"Say, Caius, you ordered whiskey, right?"

"Yeah, I always order whiskey. It's more of a thing of habit now. Why, not good enough for you?"

"No, whiskey is fine." Adachi lifted his glass and swirled the scarlet liquid within. "Red-colored whiskey, however, is a bit different…" I frowned and looked at my own glass. Sure enough, the liquid within was blood red. I sniffed it tentatively, and it still smelled like whiskey.

"Hey Saitou, I think there's something wrong with your…" my voice trailed off as I noticed that I was talking to a coffin. Looking around, I noticed that everyone in the bar has transmogrified. "Jesus Christ, how drunk are we? We didn't even notice the Dark Hour hit!" Reaching over, I grabbed the detective by the arm. "Come on now Adachi. We need to get back to Shadow Ops HQ, it's the Dark Hour."

"Wha, and just leave?" Adachi answered, slurring over his words. "An' what's gonna happen here? They'll wake up and notice that we teleported? How would you explain that next time you come here?" I snarled under my breath and let go of him. Drunk as he was, he had a point. Since Saitou knows that we're here, we can't really leave when he's transmogrified.

As I was sitting down, Adachi looked at his glass of blood-whiskey for a while, and took a tentative sip. Then he shrugged and took a larger gulp. Noticing me looking, he explained: "Tastes and smells exactly the same as normal whiskey. My guess is that the blood thing is just aesthetics." Hearing that, I took a sip as well.

_'Yep, this tastes like whiskey.'_

_ 'Are you sure you want to trust the stuff Caius?'_

_ "Chicot, I absorbed the essence of gemstones I pick up from the Dark Hour to heal sicknesses before you learned Amrita. I've drank sodas and eaten food found from the first two levels of Tartarus back when we were still stupid enough to venture in. I'm pretty sure that whatever this thing has in it, my body's seen worse shit."_

_ 'Fair point.' _Chicot suddenly tensed up. _'Shadow at twelve o' clock.'_

I swiveled around in my seat, scanning the bar. A light creaking from the corner of the bar caught my attention. Craning my neck, I managed to make out a Maya wrenching at a coffin lid. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed more Shadows leaking into the bar from various openings and cracks.

_'They sense two inebriated Persona-users, pretty much food for the taking. You need to sober up, Caius.'_

_ 'Of course I know that.' _I lifted my evoker to my temple, slurring out the commands:

"Chicot! **Amrita**-" Before I can pull the trigger, a hand grabbed my arm and pulled the evoker from my head. Turning around, I saw Adachi holding my arm, grinning a lopsided grin. "What the-"

"C'mon…" the drunk detective almost pouted, "Fighting Shadows while sober is for pussies…" I looked at the detective in shock. Sensing my unease, Adachi staggered upright and faced me.

"I can totally fight… while drunk… I'll prove it to you!" As he was talking, a King sneaked up behind him and pounced, scepter ready for a strike. I opened my mouth, about to warn Adachi about the incoming headache…

Only for him to dance to a side and trip the Shadow with a low sweep kick while drawing his revolver from his back pocket. While the Shadow lay on the ground, dazed, Adachi clutched his stomach, pointed at the Shadow, and started laughing his head off. I raised an eyebrow at his antics, but found myself grinning as well.

The King started to get up, but Adachi quickly shot it in the head three times. The Shadow collapsed into a heap and started dissolving. I found myself chuckling at the ridiculousness of the situation. Adachi spun back towards me in an exaggerated pose.

"See? I killed that one no problem! C'mon Caius, drunken Shadow killing! All the thrills and fun of Shadow killing, only combined with alcohol! We deserve something reckless and fun after that depressing heart-to-heart!"

"This is a terrible idea… alright, let's do it. But let's make it clear, if I so much see a single stool get overturned, I am immediately casting Amrita. Are we clear?"

"Crystal!" The drunk detective snapped into a mock salute, and then clutched his head as if in pain. Before I could ask what was going on, his face suddenly snapped up with his eyes wide open.

"Magatsu Izanagi! **Vorpal Blade**!" A blood-soaked figure wearing a trench coat appeared behind Adachi and swung a blade around. Countless slashes filled the bar, closely followed by a multitude of Shadow screams. Yet for all the Shadow carnage he wrought, not even a single stool was shifted by the attack.

_'When did he become so proficient in pulling his punches?'_

_ 'A Persona is the power of the mind. Despite all, you friend Adachi there did spend a whole year playing the role of a detective in a case where he was also the killer. He must be a lot more meticulous than he lets on, for such a façade to even work. It's got to reflect on his Persona abilities in some way…'_ Caius offered his hypothesis. I shrugged.

_'Eh, either way I'm happy. And he does seem to be having the time of his life.' _True enough, Adachi was pretty much bouncing all over the bar, laughing madly while he shoots, kicks and pistol-whips all the Shadows around him.

_ 'It is interesting that he summons his Persona the same way as Takaya.'_

_ 'He has the roughly the same amount of sanity as Takaya does too. Wonder if that's the reason?'_

_ 'Caius, we aren't exactly sane compared to them either…'_

_ 'True.' _As we were talking, Adachi summoned his Persona once more,

"**Atom Smasher**!" Magastu Izanagi swung his blade around again, and slashes filled the room again. Only this time, more Shadows survived, and I felt the effects of fear on all the survivors. Adachi paused and looked at me as if expecting something. I rolled my eyes and pointed my evoker to my head.

"**Ghastly Wail.**" At a scream from Chicot, the bar once again filled with the screams of dying Shadows. Adachi started laughing like a delighted child, and I started chuckling as well. Almost skipping back to his seat on the bar, Adachi grabbed two shot glasses that were hanging from a rack on the bar and filled them both with whiskey, passing me one.

"Drinking game! Every time Adachi and Caius tag teams a Shadow, take a shot!" After declaring that, the detective downed his glass in one go, then looked at me with wide eyes.

"This is the point where the night goes straight to shit, right?" I paused for a while, and then downed my whiskey just like Adachi. Placing down the glass, I stood up and pulled the Lupara out of my bag. "Bring. It. On." Adachi beamed.

_'Oh boy. This is not going to end well…'_ Chicot lamented in my head.

Facing the bar that was slowly filling up with Shadows, the two of us tensed, and then charged headfirst into the group of Shadows, unleashing carnage all around us. Swaying around, I unloaded two buckshots into two separate Shadows, laughing drunkenly as I did so. A third Maya pounced at me from behind, a mouth with fangs forming from the black goo above my shoulder. Spinning around, I rammed the butt of the Lupara into the mask of the Maya, sending it tumbling back into a pile.

"Head's up!" Hearing Adachi's voice, I looked back and barely ducked in time as the detective basically leapfrogged over me. Pointing his gun forward, Adachi let out a three shot burst from his revolver, killing the Shadow quickly. Spinning around, he raised an open palm to me. "High five!"

Mentally face-palming, I obliged him, and then quickly reloaded my gun while kicking another Shadow into its buddies. When I looked up, I saw Adachi holding a full shot glass in front of my face while draining another in his other hand. Seeing my confused expression, the detective raised an eyebrow.

"What? Did ya… forget? Drinking game! We tag teamed that…. Shadow-thingymajig! Take a shot bro, take a… hic… shot!" Grabbing the shot glass, I downed it in one go, grimacing as the liquid burned its way down my throat. Handing the glass back to Adachi, I hefted the gun in my hand.

"Get those glasses back to the bar table, I'll…. cover your back." The drunken detective chuckled and started wobbling back to the bar.

"You'd better do that, or Mitsuru-san would…. Execute your ass…" We both shared a laugh. Even amongst those who were not part of SEES, the prototype group of the Shadow Ops, the Kirijo heiress' natural affinity for "executions" was well known. As Adachi made his sluggish way towards the bar, two Mayas lunged at him. Lifting my gun, I pointed lazily at the Shadows and let out two shots, one for each Maya. With each shot, the Shadows were bounced back to where they sprang from, fizzling out as they fell.

Once Adachi got to the bar, a Gigas suddenly sprung up from behind the bar, swinging a giant fist towards the detective, knocking him back. As he fell, Adachi drew his revolver and let out a quick burst of shots towards the Shadow, pushing it back. Then his gun clicked. The cylinder was empty. Having recovered its footings, the Gigas reared its ugly head once more.

_Oh no you don't!_ Quickly drawing my dagger, I allowed it to fly from my hands like a silver arrow, sinking deep into the Giga's forehead. As the Shadow died, Adachi quickly reloaded his revolver, and then struggled to his feet. Placing the shot glasses, which had miraculously survived the clash, onto the bar table, the detective quickly filled both with whiskey and then waved a hand at me.

"Heyyyyyy…! We tag teamed another one! C'monnnnn Caius…. Another shot!"

Shaking my head, I trudged over towards the bar.

_The hangover tomorrow is going to be a nightmare…_

* * *

><p>Almost an hour later, Adachi and I were back at the bar table, sitting next to each other and surveying the Shadow carnage that surrounded us. By some work of miracle, the bar itself hasn't sustained any noticeable damage, and somehow I was still sober enough to loot all the Shadows.<p>

'_No Caius, it wasn't a miracle that you were sober enough to do that. 15 minutes in the game you secretly used Amrita on yourself, remember?'_

'_Ohhh… yeah. So that happened… Well, for someone who's had Amrita casted on him, I'm wasted as fuck….'_

'_You don't say? You must've taken ten shots since then…'_

Out of the corner of my eyes, I noticed a Maya start to phase through the wall, took a look at all the carnage, and immediately backed out twice as fast. Adachi started to get up, but I placed a hand on his shoulder, holding him down. The detective didn't even seem to notice, but flailed his arms around.

"Come back here… ya coward Shadow… imma suiken your ass straight ta hell!"

"Sit down Adachi… you're drunk…" As I held the drunk Adachi down, I flipped open my mechanical pocket watch and checked the time. "Well, look at the time, we've got five minutes before the Dark Hour ends… Wait, do you hear me?" Turning the detective around so that he faced the bar table, I tried to prop him up in some acceptable fashion. "We've got 5 minutes to get ready, cos we need to pretend the last hour didn't happen. You hear me bro?" He mumbled in some incoherent manner which I took for an affirmative. I sat down next to him, closed my eyes, and took a deep breath, trying to focus my thoughts into one, coherent line.

The hubbub of a bar suddenly returned. The Dark Hour was officially over. Opening my eyes, I sighed in relief as nobody seemed to notice our brief little foray into the Dark Hour. Looking next to me, I saw Adachi pretty much out cold at my side. Chuckling, I left the money for the two bottles of whiskey on the bar table, waved to Saitou, and started making my way out with Adachi passed out on my shoulder.

_Saitou POV_

The bartender watched the Caius leave, supporting his friend on his shoulder. That wasn't a strange sight here in the bar. But the sheer speed in which they cleared the second bottle of whiskey had been somewhat unnerving. Shrugging to himself, Saitou resumed cleaning the various leftover glasses.

_Then again, they are hardly the strangest guests I have tonight…._

With that thought, he glanced over at the corner of the bar, where a young woman with chin length blonde hair wearing a velvet blue dress was seated, sipping at her martini. Her yellow eyes were wide and brimming with interest as she looked at the backs of Caius and his friend.

As the door clicked shut, the smallest of smiles could be seen forming on her lips.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: And this is what happens when two psychopaths walk into a bar. Thanks to Black Flame09 for the suggestion for this chapter! I think I might just move on with the story for next chapter….

As always, please R&R!


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

_Inner thoughts and flashbacks_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands issued to Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC…

* * *

><p>I woke up with a raging headache. Massaging my left temple, I reached out with my other hand to find my evoker. Finding it, I pointed it to my temple and pulled the trigger.<p>

"Chicot, **Amrita**." As the soothing wave washed over me, I felt most of the headache disappear, but still leaving a dull throb. I frowned at the lingering headache.

_'Losing your touch, Chicot? It used to be that you can wipe a hangover away in an instant…'_

_ 'It used to be that you wouldn't drink two bottles of whiskey in two hours, and would cast Amrita before fighting an army of Shadows.'_

_ 'Hehe, I guess you're right." _Getting up from my bed, I booted up my laptop while setting some tea brewing. Briefly glancing at the frosted surface of the kitchen counter, I sighed as the ice sublimated.

_'How long has this been going on? I barely remember the nightmares anymore, but I'm sure they're still there. I just adapted. But you're still randomly freezing up my apartment.'_

_ 'Ever since Project Prometheus. And you are aware that it's because you're sending subconscious distress signals while asleep, right?'_

_ 'That's just a hypothesis. Granted, our hypothesis usually makes sense and serves most practical purposes, but still…'_ Pouring myself a cup of tea, I took a sip. _'Hopefully this would help with the hangover…' _

_ 'Hey, check it out. You've got mail.'_ Looking over at my laptop, I noticed the e-mail icon flashing. Clicking on it, the new message was displayed.

"Attention all Shadow Operatives,

There will be an emergency meeting today at midnight in the Shadow Operatives HQ. Attendance is required.

Signed: Mitsuru Kirijo"

_'Hmph. An emergency meeting, during the Dark Hour? Well played Mitsuru-san. Well played…'_

_ 'What do you think this is about?'_

_ 'I am thou, and thou art I. Chicot, you share my mind. What the hell do you think I think this is about?'_ After a brief pause, the both of us said simultaneously:

_ 'Project Prometheus….'_

* * *

><p>11:45 pm. Once again I stood in front of the ridiculously large palace that serves as the Shadow Operative's HQ. Knocking at the doors, I was greeted by one of the maids and led to the giant dance floor where the party was held a week ago. Without the party lights and massive tables of food, the giant room looks hollow. The few people standing on the dance floor only serves to accentuate the emptiness of the hall.<p>

"Doesn't quite look the same, right?" A voice drawled out at my side. I turned around to see Adachi lounging at my side. He was grinning his lopsided smile at me just like normal, despite the abnormal amount of alcohol he consumed the night before.

"Dude, how can you look so calm and composed right now? I mean, you've gotta have a raging headache after last night. Hell, your liver must look like the surface of Mars right now." Adachi just looked at me sideways, smiling one of his signature smiles.

"That's my secret. I always have a headache." I chuckled at his response.

"You have been watching too many Hollywood movies. But I agree, who wouldn't have a headache working with these people? I mean, things are still nice when we're being strictly professional and just doing our jobs, but once I say something that disagrees with them all hell breaks loose. Can't they just agree to disagree?"

"Nope. They are completely convinced that theirs is the right way to live, and they won't be satisfied until they shove their 'morals' down your throat." The amused smile on Adachi's face softened his insult. I chuckled at his expression.

"Sounds like half the people on the internet… Hehehe, at least those people argue with some form of logic…" This time, it was Adachi's turn to chuckle.

"Bro, you have not been working with them long enough. The last time we talked about morals, it ended in a shouting match."

"When was that?"

"A year ago or so."

"That was when you were still in Inaba right? So, how did the serial killer plead his case with the Inaba Scoobies?" Adachi scowled and I smiled. "I see. If I had to guess, you weren't exactly arguing according to logic either, eh? I'll bet that it ended with you yelling at them to shut up." Adachi's scowl deepened.

"Shut up." The detective muttered under his breath. I cracked out a smile.

Before our banter can continue, the voice of a certain Kirijo rang through the halls.

"Welcome, Shadow Operatives. The meeting time is almost here, so shall we relocate to one of the conference rooms?" I chuckled as the rest of the Shadow Operatives filed out of the room, and made a mock bow in Adachi's direction.

"Shall we then?"

"Tch. Might as well." The detective smirked and started following everyone else, with me at his side.

We walked down the dark corridor towards the conference room. The hollow footsteps of the whole group echoed down the dimly lit halls. As we reached the double doors of the conference room, the Dark Hour kicked in.

As the eerie green hue settled in around us, I once more felt the phantom touches of the loose straitjacket straps. Without my consent, the corners of my mouth started turning upwards into a hybrid of a snarl and a maniacal smile. Chicot shifted in the back of my mind, clearly antsy for action. My left hand twitched towards the direction of my evoker.

Quickly catching myself, I grit my teeth and clenched my fists. Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and released it slowly. As the air slowly left my lungs, I felt my heartbeat slow down and the tension leave my body. Opening my eyes, I saw that Fuuka and Rise were both glancing around nervously, but neither of them seemed to be focused on me. Before I can make any other observations, Mitsuru opened the doors to the conference room and we started to pour in. By this time I noticed there was a face that I didn't recognize in the group.

The man stood next to Mitsuru. He had cropped black hair and a goatee, wore a black suit and was holding a briefcase. He had just as much of an air of command around him as the heiress beside him but his most noticeable trait was a glowing green ring on his right middle finger. As the rest of the Shadow Operatives took a seat, Mitsuru stepped forward.

"First, some introductions are necessary. This man here," she gestured towards the man, "is a representative from the National Police." The representative nodded in response. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Shirogane's eyes light up in recognition, and Labrys grit her teeth in anger. Mitsuru continued:

"He's here with the update on Project Prometheus that we requested from the National Police. So if you can all give him your full undivided attention for a while."

Nodding to Misturu, the representative walked forward and started speaking:

"Greetings Shadow Operatives. I am from the National Police, and while our two organizations has had their disagreement in the past," at this point his eyes darted briefly first at Shirogane then at Labrys, "we are now coming with the sincerest intentions of cooperation. Now, for my report:

"In recent months there was an ever slight increase in death rates around some major cities. Those deaths were not given much heed, due to the identity of those deceased. Of those who died there were delinquents who ran away from home, gang members, homeless people, etc. As such, these additional deaths were chalked up to an increase of violent crimes and not linked to any Shadow related activity.

"But this view became challenged when a week ago we uncovered a body of a homeless man that showed no cause of death. This sparked a series of investigations regarding all the additional deaths that occurred before. By redoing the autopsies on previous victims, it has shown that many of the established reasons of death were actually inflicted upon the victim immediately after brain death. This difference was discovered by a highly experienced coroner, and would have been lost to any other." As the representative talked, he opened his briefcase and pulled out a map.

"As such, we started to suspect Shadow related activity, since the last known case of large amounts of death without cause was in a Shadow-related serial murder case." With those words the representative looked pointedly at Adachi, who just grinned lazily and waved. The representative's gaze then fixed on me for a split second before focusing on the map he just spread out on the table. "We've traced out all the cities where known cases of such death has occurred, and most of them are centered on Samaru city, right here." He points a place on the map. I saw Mitsuru stiffen with tension. Apparently the National Police representative also noticed that.

"I see that you have had your own doubts about Samaru City yourself Kirijo. Very well, I am only here as a messenger, and I have delivered my message. The rest is up to you Shadow Operatives. The higher echelons of the National Police have high hopes for your results." Packing up his map into the briefcase, the man walked into a corner of the room and tucked his briefcase under one armpit. Then he started to pull his glowing ring off.

Before I could even wonder what he was trying to do, the ring slipped off his finger and landed on the floor with an audible clink. Almost immediately the man that was standing in front of us was replaced with a standing coffin. A few gasps came from the gathered Shadow Operatives at his sudden transmogrification. Mitsuru silently picked up the dropped ring and pocketed it.

"Unlike us, he is not a Persona-user, nor does he wish to be permanently exposed to the Dark Hour. So I lent him this ring that was confiscated from the Kirijo Ergo Labs that can allow him to be active in the Dark Hour as long as he wears it. Now let us discuss Samaru City. Kujikawa, Yamagishi, have either of you detected anything in the region?"

Rise shook her head, while Fuuka looked at Mitsuru apologetically.

"I'm afraid not Mitsuru-san. Whatever they're doing at Samaru City, it's either non Shadow-related or really well concealed. Now that I think of it, that has been a trait of Project Prometheus for a long time. We will need to travel to Samaru City in order to get a better reading."

"Didn't you two detect a spike a Shadow activity in Tokyo that led to our raid of the Tokyo branch?" Junpei interjected, "Can you feel anything similar to that in this case?"

"Uhhh… yeah, about that…" Rise laughed embarrassedly to herself while scratching the back of her head, "After Caius joined up we discovered that the spike of Shadow activity that we detected was just Caius using his Persona before he met us. So…. Yeah, the spike in activity is completely unrelated to Project Prometheus, and we just got lucky that time…" I raised an eyebrow in amusement to that statement.

"Huh. Was I stirring up that much of a wave that I caused a disturbance in the Force? I'm flattered."

"No, not really. I mean in hindsight we understood that the spike could've been caused by just one veteran Persona-user, but it was the first clue we've got in ages, so we clung on to it." Rise quickly explained. I hung my head in mock disappointment. The idol continued on: "Anyway, right now I would suggest that Fuuka-san and I go to Sumaru City and scan the city there. I am confident that if we do that then we will be able to find out whether or not Project Prometheus is there or not."

"That seems to be the best option. But I would rather send out a full team of field agents to Sumaru city to deal with this." Seeing our surprised expressions, Mitsuru continued, "Sumaru city has its own Shadow-related history. The prime business partner to the Kirijo Group, the Nanjo Group, has had its own dabbling in Personas and Shadows as well. In fact, the current leader of the Nanjo Group, Kei Nanjo, is a powerful Persona-user himself and was involved in a few Shadow-related crisis. I've spoken to Nanjo before on the topic of Shadows. Apparently two major Shadow crisis occurred in Sumaru city, the scope of which none of us can even imagine."

"Really? We were preventing the end of the world back then. I think it's not as bad as you describe." Junpei jokingly said. A few of the Shadow Operatives murmured in agreement, and Mitsuru smiled.

"In any other case I would agree with you. But in this case, I would stand with Nanjo. The powers he described could've put Erebus and Nyx into shame. But enough of that. You can now see why I have almost no doubt that what's happening in Sumaru City is Shadow-related. The only question is whether or not it is related to Project Prometheus. Either way, as the police sub-department responsible for dealing with Shadow activity, we need to look into this. So I am redirecting a team of field agents to Sumaru City."

"Well, maybe it isn't my place to say…" Narukami began, and Mitsuru nodded for him to continue. "But doesn't it seem risky to send only a team of field agents into team city? I mean, the last time it took two thirds of us to raid the Tokyo branch, so I think it would be better if we sent the same amount this time."

"Wait a second… You said that it took two thirds of you guys to take down the Tokyo branch?" I interjected. Mitsuru nodded, and I let out a bark of laughter. "If Sumaru City holds a major branch for Project Prometheus, you definitely would want to bring every single combat personal to the raid. The Tokyo branch was granted to Watanabe only because he helped fund Project Prometheus, and from Watanabe's last words before I snuffed him, he wasn't 100% loyal to the Project either. That means the Tokyo branch is one of the weakest branches, if not the weakest branch, or else the Project wouldn't let someone like Watanabe lead it.

"So you get where I'm coming from, right? If you guys needed two thirds of your forces to raid one of the weakest branches, then it would be obvious that you need everyone before you try and tackle another branch. Don't 'cha think?" Narukami nodded in agreement, but Hanamura next to him seems suspicious.

"How are we to know that that's true? You have only been working with us for a week, and you still have quite a suspicious background. How can we trust a murderer's word, especially when he's telling us to be reckless and commit to an all-out attack?" He scoffs at me. I grinned lazily.

"I see. Still caught up on the fact that I'm a murderer, huh?"

"Of course I am! You admit to killing people in cold blood! How can I not be appalled and caught up by this? You are a murderer who's still walking free, and I have no idea why Kirijo-san decided to hire you!" Hanamura exploded. Narukami looked somewhat embarrassed and tugged at Hanamura's back.

"Yosuke, maybe you should-" Before he can finish his sentence, Hanamura spun around and yelled at Narukami as well.

"Don't you 'Yosuke' me Yu! He is worse than Adachi because Adachi at least paid for his crimes, in some shape or form, and is repentant. This son of a bitch doesn't even care for the people who he killed in the past. Not even a friggin apology or anything at all! How can I work with this… crazy lunatic?! I say we should make him pay for his crimes before we do anything else!"

"Would losing my parents in a freak accident count as 'paying'? Would being used as an experiment control count as 'paying'? Would living my whole childhood knowing that I could die the next day count as 'paying'?" I snapped at Hanamura. "Believe me kid, if there was any other way to survive, the 12 year old me would have embraced it. Do you think it was easy, claiming a human life at the age of 12? To make things worse, I had to do it empty handed, so I was forced to feel my first victim's pulse fade out under my fingers. But if I haven't done that, I wouldn't be sitting here right now. But I digress. I believe we have signed a contract. I never violate a contract unless my employer does so first. You can trust my word when it comes to Project Prometheus."

"So you say." Hanamura still insisted. "But my point still stands. I, we, can't trust a murderer."

"Sure you can. Why? Because you've got no choice. I am the only one here who's had extensive contact with Watanabe, and interacted with Project Prometheus in a non-combat way. Grow up Hanamura, now that I'm in your life there will be plenty of times when you have no other choice but to trust me."

"You make it sound so easy, trusting those who could kill you without a second thought." Sarcasm dripped deep in Hanamura's voice.

"It will be. I got used to it ages ago. Strega had an understanding between us that a quick death is better than a life of suffering, and a promise that we will mercy-kill each other when all hope is lost. Also, I believe that all of you have heard of name Shuji Ikutsuki before?" Almost all the Shadow Operatives nodded their heads. I raised an eyebrow.

"After my parent were killed in the Port Island Explosion 13 years ago, he adopted me." This statement elicited several gasps from my audience. I smiled lazily at their response. "Yeah, it was exactly what you guys think. Chicot had emerged roughly the same time as that incident, and Ikutsuki caught up on that. I was his ward in name, but in reality I was merely the control group for the ongoing experiments that gave birth to the rest of Strega.

"And then when it turned out that the even the 'successful' artificial Personas were far too malevolent to control without the suppressants, he just decided to terminate the program. Along with all of the subjects and control. He just didn't bank on the fact that his termination orders would trigger so much fear and anger within us that, for a few minutes, the four of us who would later form Strega could summon our Personas at will. Takaya later went on and mastered the skill, but the rest of us never bothered.

"So we all barely escaped with our lives, and managed to salvage a few evokers on the way out. After a year or two of living as street urchins, we established ourselves as guns for hire. Then, lo and behold, in walks Ikutsuki again, this time representing the Kirijo group with the largest contract we've ever seen. Of course, all of us still hated his guts, but we accepted and did his dirty work because that meant not going hungry for over two months. He paid up after the contract was fulfilled and didn't try anything weird, and then he showed up a month later with another contract. Over time, we developed a pretty heathy business relationship of mutual trust.

"And you know what? I even felt a bit sad after hearing that the guy died from a fall 3 years ago. I assume it had something to do with you guys, and knowing him the bastard probably deserved it three times over. But still, we formed a bond. Can you believe that? A sadist mad scientist and his runaway experiments…." I fell silent for a moment, and then chuckled at the shocked expression in Hanamura's eyes.

"Why so shocked, boy? Did you really think that the simple act of murder would erase a person's humanity? No. And that's what makes murderers so scary. We are not a different breed that you can dehumanize. No, we are your sons, your husbands, your best friends, and if you dare look closely at us, you would find a kindred spirit looking back at you from the depths of the void, with the only thing separating you and him being sheer dumb luck.

"So to answer your initial question, Hanamura, yes, you can trust me on this. The Tokyo branch is definitely not something that Project Prometheus considered important. This thing in Samaru City though… you will do well to throw everything you've got at it if you want to take it down with minimal causalities. That is my opinion on this subject-matter." Hanamura looked like he was about to say more, but Mitsuru cleared her throat.

"That is enough. We have driven off topic for far too long. I will be taking Caius' advice and sending in a field agents to Sumaru City. As he said before, he is our chief source of information regarding Project Prometheus, so even if he has a questionable background, his word is still better than nothing. We will meet in front of this building two days from now at noon for our transport to Sumaru City. Please prepare yourself before then. Meeting adjourned."

I stood up with the rest of the Shadow Operatives and started walking out of the room. I felt the corners of my lips tugging up, and a psychotic smirk started forming on my face.

_Sumaru City…. A large group of Persona-users in battle against Shadows and humans…. Why, this is starting to feel like my old Strega days…._

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: I swear, first it's Junpei, then it's Yosuke. The Persona series just has to have that one guy who is completely lovable in all other traits but a complete stick-up-his-butt when it comes to morality. It would've been way too unrealistic for Yosuke to just accept Caius' status as a 'murderer' without some form of argument, and with the Sumaru City raid coming up, I just thought that we should settle this before the battle….

As always, please R&R!


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

_Flashbacks and inner thoughts_

'_Persona talk'_

**Commands and Moves**

Disclaimer: Look, if I owned Persona or anything other than the OC, I wouldn't have to write this line. So in conclusion, I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>I stepped off the limo, breathing in the fresh air and stretching out my legs. A giant building loomed in front of me, with "Hotel Pleiades" printed on the front in golden words. Turning around, I beheld the sight of the coastline city. Skyscrapers dotted the horizons in an impressive display of modern architecture, as the sound of the sea rumbled from a distance. The setting sun can be seen in a distance, painting everything a hue of orange.<p>

_'Sumaru City… A magnificent sight, isn't it Chicot?'_

_ 'Of course. We're in front of a five star hotel, so they would obviously show the most beautiful side of the city. But as with all cities, the more beautiful the bright side…'_

_ '…The more grotesque the dark side. But be honest with me Chicot, wasn't that always good news for people like us?'_

_ 'Hehehe... I guess you're right.' _As the two of us were talking, the rest of the Shadow Operatives also left the limo, and most of them were staring wide-eyed at the giant hotel in front of us.

"Woah… This is so huge! And I thought that inn at Port Island was large…." Chie's eyes were practically popping out.

"Do we really have to mention that place?" Yosuke paused his staring long enough to comment in an exasperated tone. "I have enough bad memories already…"

"Oh, oh, I know, it's that place where Yosuke and Kanji-" The bear thing named Teddie started jumping up and down before a very angry Tatsumi backhanded him.

"Shut it, Bear!" Teddie flew back and rolled down the lane until he crashed into a trash can. Somehow unfazed by that, he immediately sprang back up and started pouting.

"Kanji-! You're so mean! Sensei! Kanji is bullying me!" Teddie immediately started running in the direction of Narukami, who seemed quite content to just stand with Shirogane at the sidelines but now have to deal with the screaming mascot bear.

"Jeez, just looking at them gives me a headache." Adachi voice came from behind me. Turning around, I found the detective looking at the Shadow Operative's antics with a mocking smile.

"You caused me many a headache when I was carrying you back to the Shadow Ops HQ from Saitou's bar. And the fact that Amrita didn't seem to have much effect didn't really help…"

"What? You casted Amrita on me? Jerkass. And here I was, proud of my liver for handling all the alcohol without a hangover…."

As we were bantering, Mitsuru stepped out of the car and addressed all the Shadow Operatives.

"Everyone, we will meet at the lobby at midnight. Until then, I have booked rooms for everyone, and we should all stay in the hotel area and prepare until the time is here." A groan rose up from some of the Shadow Operatives, and Mitsuru cracked a smile. "It's only for one afternoon, and we can have a full day for fun after we finished our business here. Kikuno here have already checked us in, and she will be handing out your room keys to you now. Alright then, dismissed."

As the Shadow Operatives scattered, I received my room card from Mitsuru's maid, and headed towards into the hotel, surrounded by the chattering Shadow Ops. Looking up at a plaque that proudly displayed the hotel's status as a five-star hotel, I snorted to myself.

_'It's a five-star hotel, but it really has nothing when compared to the Shadow Operative's HQ.'_

_ 'Hey, don't diss the commoners.' _Chicot rebutted, but he was on the verge of laughing just as I was.

When we got to our room though, I let out a low whistle. A king sized bed was in the center of the room, with an armchair near the window. A giant TV hung from the wall in front of a sofa that can easily accommodate four people, and a bottle of wine in an ice bucket sat on the coffee desk between the sofa and TV, with four glasses surrounding it. There was a note on the bucket saying that the wine was a gift from the hotel to us. Probably because we booked so many rooms at once. At the side of the room, there was a bathroom with a nice shower and bathtub within.

_'Okay… I'm impressed.'_

_ 'You'd better be, Caius. It took a lot of luck and fortitude so that your ghetto ass could be standing in this room now.'_

_ 'Okay Chicot, who's dissing the commoners again?' _Chicot laughed heartily at my question, and I soon joined in. Throwing my duffel bag onto the floor, I scooped out a fresh change of clothes before heading to the showers.

_'These showers better be as good as they look…'_

* * *

><p>Later that night, I laid out my full armory on the bed. Taking a sip of wine from one of the glasses, I looked at my freshly maintained Lupara and dagger on the side of the bed, along with the gun belt filled with carefully color coded gem shots. Normal buckshots were stacked in a leather pouch which was also strapped onto the belt.<p>

In the middle of the bed was a vest made from boiled leather and lined with chainmail. The Barbaric Bracers lay right next to the vest, and a metal groin protector gleamed on the opposite side.

_'I still don't get the groin protector.'_ Chicot muttered in my mind.

_'That's because you are always in spirit form. I can accept any other injury, but there's no way in hell I would allow myself to get hit in the junk.'_

_ 'You've got no helmet. Surely your head would be a higher priority?'_

_ 'The thing about my head is that if I get hit hard there with a helmet on, I would still get a severe concussion. Better to leave the head unburdened so that I can duck and weave better.'_

_ 'Are you sure this is not a psychological thing shared between males?'_

_ 'Shut up. You have never been kicked in the nuts before. In fact, I'm not even sure whether you have nuts to be kicked.'_

_ 'Oh they're there. Just not in physical form.'_

_ 'My point still stands. They can't get kicked.' _Ending the increasingly ridiculous conversation, I stripped down to my undergarments and started putting on the various pieces of armor. The groin protector went to the obvious location, and a pair of study jeans with extra padded knees went over it. I strapped on the Barbaric Bracers, and then turned to the leather vest.

I shivered slightly as the cold leather touched my bare chest. Taking a deep breath to expand my chest, I held my breath as I strapped on the vest as tight as it would go, and then released it. This way the vest would be both form-fitting and loose enough for me to breathe normally. I hopped in place a few times to test the extra weight. Satisfied with the results, I pulled on a black hoodie and strapped on the gun belt.

The pouch of lead buck shots hung at the back, the Lupara was strapped to my right leg in a holster, while the evoker holster was on the left. The dagger was strapped on my chest diagonally for a quick draw. I looked up at the clock. 11:45 pm.

_Tch. Still 15 minutes to go. I guess I'll just have to wait a bit then…_

As I sat down, I heard a knock on the door. Through the cat eye I saw the lopsided grin of a familiar serial killer. I opened the door and quickly ushered him in before any passerby could accidently catch a glimpse of me being armed to the teeth. Adachi turned around and looked at me up and down.

"Wow. You look fit for war."

"Hmph. I'll only get my paycheck if I survive, so I have every intention of doing that."

"Hmm… Interesting thought…." Adachi turned around and walked into my room. As he passed by the TV, he reached out a hand and brushed it against the screen, leaving a trail of light ripples. "Tell me Caius, how many casualties do you think?"

"For the total annihilation of the Sumaru City base? I don't know. I didn't face Watanabe's Shadow Guardians last time." Walking over to the TV, I tapped a screen with a finger and watched the resulting ripples with interest.

"Neither did I. They only enlisted me as an auxiliary unit after you outsmarted them. But what do you think?"

"There will definitely be death." I casually commented as I poured out a new glass of wine and handed it to Adachi. He took it and took a sip. "Only fools would imagine that they can change the world without bleeding themselves."

"The Investigation Team did. They defeated me and a Goddess without any causalities. They created a miracle." Adachi took another sip of his glass of wine. I raised an eyebrow at his tone of voice. It sounded… almost like a child wishing a hopeless wish. "I don't know. Between them and me, we went past many a crisis with no deaths. So many, that I'm starting to feel uneasy about it. Is it wrong for me to hope that we'll do so again?"

"No, it's not." I took another sip of wine. "But we're not dealing with Shadows, Gods, or teenagers with Messiah-complexes this time around. In every other situation that the Shadow Operatives have encountered before, no matter how dire, their opposition has had some reason to keep them alive. Be it to harvest their Personas, or as a social experiment, or just because the evil has not awoken yet.

"But this time, this time we can safely bet that our opponents would be served best if we die ASAP. We are fighting someone who most likely thinks similar to Ikutsuki. And whoever they are, they do not need, nor would they want, us alive."

A silence fell as both of us contemplated tonight's raid and what it would result in. Adachi sat down on the couch and looked at the ceiling for a bit.

"You said that they wanted to snatch our Personas?"

"I don't know if they perfected the technology, and I'm really not sure if I want to find out, but yeah. That's what they want."

"Huh… Caius, how long as Chicot been with you?" I raised an eyebrow at the unexpected question.

"For 13 years. Why?"

"Wow. I bet you don't even remember what it's like to be the only consciousness in your mind. Heh, Magatsu has only been with me for two years, but he's pretty much family now…" At the mention of his name, Adachi's Persona materialized behind him. As if resonating with the other Persona, I felt Chicot stand behind me as well. Adachi looked up at Magatsu and placed a hand on the Persona's blade. "He's the best thing that happened to me in a long time. And he's mine. He's my sub-consciousness, my id. Nobody else's. I would die before I allow him to be taken from me."

"I hear you. If not for Chicot, I would've gone insane a long time ago. Although, considering that he is a part of me and I talk with him all the time, I might've already gone mad…" Both of us, and our Persona, chuckled at my little joke. Adachi then leaned back and looked at Magastu again.

As both our Persona slowly faded away, I heard the detective mutter quietly, as if to himself: "If Magatsu gets captured…." I drained my glass of wine and placed the glass on the table with a loud clink.

"Not until all hope is lost, Adachi. Not until all hope is lost." Leaning back, I looked at the clock. Half a minute until the Dark Hour. "We should get going, detective. It's almost meeting time."

* * *

><p>We met the rest of the Shadow Operatives in the lobby. The green hue of the Dark Hour casted everyone in a ghastly light. Some of the Shadow Operatives, like Narukami and Mitsuru, greeted us curtly when Adachi and I arrived. Others, like Junpei and Yosuke, seemed to be ignoring us with every fiber in their being.<p>

After we joined the group, Mitsuru turned to Rise and Fuuka.

"I think that makes everyone. Can you two start the scan now?"

Nodding, the two sensory-types summoned their personas together. Juno appeared, encasing both Rise and Fuuka within the orb under its torso, while Kouzeon embraced Juno from behind and pointed its telescope head towards the skies. Numerous rings encased both of them, with spheres running along the rings like planets orbiting the sun.

I felt my hair stand on end as an invisible wave of probing energy washed over me. After a while, both sensory types spoke up in an oddly synchronized voice.

"This city is strange. Despite it being in the real world, it feels oddly similar to the TV world. Shadow and Persona abilities seems to be amplified here. What on earth happened here?" After a pause, they spoke again. "We have found it. A huge spike of Shadow activity in the Hirasaka Ward."

"Is it possible in any way that it is spontaneous Shadow activity?" Mitsuru inquired.

"No, we are positive. If this was caused by normal Shadows, the whole town would be drowning in them by now. This is definitely something unnaturally strong." Mitsuru nodded as the two Personas disappeared, and then gestured to the limo waiting outside the hotel.

"The car has been modified to function in the Dark Hour. Kujikawa, Yamagishi, it'll be up to you two to provide navigations to Kikuno so she can drive us there."

As we climbed into the car, I anticipated an uncomfortable journey. I was right. Even though the car was big enough for everyone to have space to spare and traffic problems didn't exist, there was just too much tension within the car for anything to be remotely comfortable. It seems that I wasn't alone on this opinion since once Rise announced that we were there, a collective sigh of relief arose.

In front of us loomed a dark school building, clearly abandoned, the battered sign next to it displaying it as "Kasugayama High School". Once all of us were out of the car, Fuuka and Rise summoned their Personas again and started another scan.

"We sense immense Shadow activity underground… There is a large empty space underneath the school. I believe that is where the Shadow activity stems from. But we're also sensing another source of power from the main building complex as well. We need to be careful, since is most likely an ambush. There's only one entrance in and out of the underground space." As their Personas dematerialized, the two sensory types looked at Mitsuru and Narukami.

"Since there's only one entrance, I think it would be meaningless to split into teams. Don't you agree Mitsuru-san?"

"Yes. As much as I detest the idea, it seems that our only option is a full frontal assault. Everyone, get ready."

There was a general sound of metal against metal as numerous blades were unsheathed. I drew the Lupara and broke open the barrel to check that it was loaded. Satisfied, I closed the gun and rested it on my shoulder. Seeing that everyone was ready, Mitsuru nodded and waved a hand for us to advance.

As a group, we started jogging into the school, Narukami at the lead with Mitsuru and Akihiko bringing up the rear. Rise and Fuuka were in the middle of the group, at the most well protected location. The long abandoned halls echoed with our footsteps as we passed through several classrooms.

_'I don't like this.'_

_ 'Yeah Chicot, I totally get what you're saying. This lack of resistance is just too ominous. Hopefully it's because they got the location wrong…'_

_ 'You know you're in deep shit when you start wishing that your navigation member got the location wrong…' _The two of us shared a chuckle at that.

By then, we have already passed through most of the school. Coming at a double door, Narukami raised his hand to signal a halt. Turning around, he looked at Rise, who quickly responded to the unasked question.

"Behind this should be an open space of some sort with the lesser source of Shadow energy. After that there is some sort of entrance that leads underground to the larger source of energy. I think we'll need to fight after opening that door." Nodding, Narukami stood up straight and looked at all of us.

"Is everyone ready?" A general murmur of the affirmative arose. Smiling slightly, Narukami spin around and kicked the double door open, and we poured into the assembly hall.

Like the rest of the school, the assembly hall was lit only by the green hue of the Dark Hour. It looked like your usual assembly hall, only with a few years of abandonment and neglect. Cracked and molding folding chairs were scattered all over the ground. The wooden lecture stand on the stadium was rotting, and the microphone lay on the ground on a side, the wires that would connect it to a set of speakers severed and frayed. The whole place reeked of desolation.

The part which differed this hall from a normal neglected room was three giant glass tanks that sat along one side of the room. They were filled with a liquid of some sort, and within the murky darkness of the liquid of each of the tanks lay a shadowy figure. With the current lighting it was extremely hard to tell what they were.

"Uhggggg…." A moan of pain drew our attention. Rise was doubled over, her hands holding her head while Fuuka tried to comfort her. But the pained expression on Fuuka's face shows that whatever's assailing Rise's mind is also attacking her.

"What's wrong Rise? Are we under attack?" Narukami asked tensely as he readied his sword. I stared at the tanks.

'_They look familiar…. far too familiar….'_

"No, we're not under attack… yet. It's those tanks…. So much hate and malice…. Whatever's in there just wants the world to burn down along with themselves…" Rise muttered, head still in her hands.

_'That phase…. It sounds like someone we…. Wait, I know this aura… I…' _Chicot muttered in my head, dread crawling its way into his, and my, mind.

"I have never felt such malice ever since Erebus…. Their emotions… so much rage! So much hate against the world, against life itself…" Fuuka exclaimed.

_'No, no, no, no, no, no, no…' _Chicot started chanting to himself in my mind. I tried to shut it out, I tried to keep his nonsensical conclusion out of my mind. I grit my teeth and gripped the handle of the Lupara tighter. But despite my best efforts, tears started welling in my eyes.

Suddenly, lights turned on above the three tanks, illuminating what was within. I let out a loud gasp at the revealed contents and dropped to my knees. Tears now flowed freely down my face.

In the left tank, a mechanical figure stood. Its body was composed of a series of spinning tops with binary codes spinning around it. Two spindly metal legs supported its weight, while a single mechanical arm with a left hand was connected to the middle.

In the right tank, a female figure wearing a horned mask stood. Her body was covered in a skin-tight suit of red and black. In one clawed hand she held a giant knife, while the other held a goblet that emitted fire and a purplish smoke.

And in the middle, a pale figure hung lifelessly. He was leaning forward, his face facing the other side, held aloft by wings that look painfully grafted to the middle of his spine. At the point where the wings linked to his back, countless blood-red roots ensnared him, extending to his whole body.

_'No, no, no n, no…. It isn't them! IT CAN'T BE THEM!'_

_ 'Moros, Medea, Hypnos…. How? Why? My friends… my dear, dear, dead friends…' _Both Chicot and I were speechless at this turn of events. Most of the other Shadow Operatives were also stunned into silence. I vaguely noticed Junpei staring at the tank with Medea in it, a single tear falling down his cheek.

"Welcome, Shadow Operatives." A voice rang above us, coming from a few speakers that lay around. "I am Matsumoto, director of the Project Prometheus Sumaru branch, and grand director of Project Prometheus. Before you stands our finest replicas of the three most successful attempts at creating a Persona. Unfortunately, the originals were all failures at being Personas, but they have sufficient raw power. So I thought, why waste a good set of blueprints? Trash can always be reused, wouldn't you agree?" I sighed in relief and then clenched my teeth in anger at his speech.

_'It's not them… it's not actually them… thank god… But they feel so real…'_

_ 'It's the same blueprints Chicot, of course they're gonna feel like the originals. This fight is gonna be painful. Dam that Project Prometheus, dam that Matsumoto…. By the time I'm done with them they would find the deepest pits of hell to be a relief…'_ I stood up and held my shotgun at ready as the tanks slowly drained of the liquids that submerged the three powerful Shadows.

Moros whirled into life. Medea shook her head free of residual liquid. Hypnos raised his head and glared at us with empty eye sockets. I wiped my eyes and grit my teeth in preparation for the heartbreaking carnage that would soon follow.

_My friends to be loved with my heart. My comrades to be protected with my life. And now… My targets to be slain by my hand…._

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: Whoo! That was crazy chapter to write! The next one would have some serious shit in there…. I just need to mentally choreograph the fights now, since with all the Shadow Operatives participating I think it's gonna take a little while….

Anyways, please R&R!


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

_Flashbacks and inner thoughts_

'_Persona talk'_

**Spells used by Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

* * *

><p>The glass tanks all shattered simultaneously, releasing the three militarized Shadows. I swiftly drew my evoker and pointed the muzzle at my chin, pulling the trigger at the same time.<p>

"Chicot, **Jester's Privilege**!" As the blood red summoning aura engulfed me, Chicot flew out from my mind and rushed towards the trio of Shadows. Moros and Hypnos jumped away quickly, but Medea was hit by Chicot's debilitating wave and was too slow to avoid his charge. Slamming into Medea, Chicot pinned her body against the wall with his giant cross. Medea screeched and tried to slash at him with her dagger, but Chicot managed to trap her dagger hand under his armpit.

_'Jesus, this reminds me of the days when she won't take her meds…' _I commented while sprinting towards the struggling duo, my gun at ready. At either side of me, the Shadow Operatives exchanged powerful spells with the other two Shadows, the floor trembling from the sheer amount of force exchanged.

'_Yep. Those were the days… Hey girl, remember when you tried to claw my eyes out when I stopped you from strangling your partner? Goods days…'_ Chicot's voice was strained from holding down the angry Shadow, but we both chuckled at the nostalgia.

Reaching where Chicot had Medea pinned, I leapt and scrambled up Chicot's back, ending up on his shoulders. I jammed the barrel of the shotgun between her eyes. At the same time, my eyes widened as I noticed Medea tipping her goblet over Chicot's head. Chicot noticed as well.

_'Oh, fuck this shit…' _he complained before a torrent of lava flowed out of the goblet and onto his head.

**Agidyne.**

Chicot and I screamed at the same time as the searing pain was shared through our bonds. I pulled the trigger almost at the same time as Chicot's dematerialization. The force of the buckshots sent me flying backwards, where I got clipped by one of Medea's flailing limbs. I flew back and landed heavily on the ground, rolling a few times to lessen the impact. Medea was staring at me with murder in her eyes, her mask cracked and shadowy ichor dripping through. On the other side of the room, Hypnos raised his head and lifted his hands. A ball of blue energy started to gather at the tip of his fingers. On the other side of the room, Moros raised his hand and a smaller ball of energy started gathering.

"Everyone, be careful! I've got a bad feeling about that attack!" Rise's voice rang up as the Shadow Operatives hastened to find cover.

_Thank you Captain Obvious. Without your consistent pointing out the obvious, I would have no way to make it through my day. _As I commented,I hastily pointed my evoker at my chest.

"**Mabufudyne**!" Nine huge block of ice materialized around me, fusing together to form a giant ice igloo surrounding me. And not a second too soon.

**Megidolaon. **

** Megido.**

Although the combined blast of almighty energy was somewhat checked by the ice shield, it still me flying. My back was slammed against a wall, and I felt the breath fly out of me along with a few specks of blood. Around me, the Shadow Operatives were in a similar state of disarray. Yukiko quickly regained her footing and summoned her Persona.

"**Mediarahan!**" A soothing wave washed over me as I felt my injuries mending. I coughed and spat out a glob of blood that was stuck in my throat. Looking up, I saw that Hypnos and Moros had taken position in front of Medea. Medea lifted her arms as if she was doing some sort of dance. I grit my teeth in frustration.

**Spring of Life.**

A shining aura emitted from Medea and encompassed Moros and Hypnos. The crack on Medea's helmet mended itself, and the various scrapes and burns on Moros and Hypnos started disappearing as well. I stood up and quickly reloaded my shotgun, resisting the urge to punch something.

_This is what I wanted to avoid by targeting Medea! Dammit all to hell!_ As I complained, Mitsuru turned to Rise and Fuuka.

"Kujikawa! Yamagishi! We need a detailed scan on our enemies!" Nodding, the two sensors summoned their Personas. I snorted in distain and started sprinting towards the trio of Shadows. Narukami's voice rang up from behind me.

"Caius! Stop, don't attack before we get a scan on it!"

"I'll bet my life that your 'scan' would amount to just as much as a pile of dog shit! Attack while you can, assholes!" As I yelled back, I allowed Angelic Grace to take over the driver's seat and cartwheeled sideways to avoid an Agidyne from Hypnos. Aiming at Medea down my sights, I pulled both triggers at the same time, firing two buck shots at the female Shadow.

Another figure suddenly obscured my sight of Medea. I blinked, recognizing Moros standing in front of Medea, blocking the buck shots while Hynos launched another Agidyne at me. Summersaulting over the inferno, I saw Moros lift his hand and clench it into a fist.

_Oh fuck me…._

**Gigantic Fist.**

The massive impact hit me mid-air, and I was sent hurtling back from where I came from. Crashing into several chairs and the wall, I gagged and vomited a pool of blood. Coughing, I tried to stand up, but a hand held me down. It was Adachi. Mitsuru was standing behind him, with her Persona at ready.

"Artemisia, **Diarahan**!" Almost immediately, I felt the various damaged internal organs healing. I made another attempt at getting up, but Adachi held me down more firmly this time.

"Bro, I know you want to fight. But wait until you know what you're fighting against."

"This time, I agree with Adachi. Your actions were far too reckless for safety. I'm ordering you to fight defensively until the scan is complete."

"It will NEVER be complete until you kill Medea!" I shouted at Mitsuru. "You think I don't know what we're up against? We are fighting against replicas of Strega's Persona, they were to me as SEES was to you, as the Investigation Team was for Narukami! If you don't defeat them quickly-!" Before I can finish my sentence a cry came out from within the combined Personas of Rise and Fuuka.

"Ah! Mitsuru-san (Senpai), it's no good! Something keeps blocking us, we can't get a scan on it at all!" Another panicked cry. "No… no! Something is invading our system, we… ugh…. We can't keep it out…"

Spinning around, I saw Moros kneeling as the binary codes surrounding his head spun rapidly. I grit my teeth and pushed Adachi away so I could stand up. Then, I faced Mitsuru.

"You see what I mean? Medea emits life, healing all of her teammates. The aura of life surrounding her also masks her and her teammates from any sensors. Moros, on the other hand, is a true sensor and would scan their enemies. In this case, he's 'hacking' into Juno and Kouzeon and learning all of our weaknesses. And you can sure as hell bet that once Moros knows our weakness, the whole trio knows."

"So what do you suggest we do to minimize damages?"

"Minimize damages? Hahahaha… I'm afraid it's a bit too late for that. You see, when I was part of Strega, the roles assigned to Takaya and I were frontline fighters. We were supposed to buy enough time for Jin and Chidori to gather info for us. Now with only Hypnos there, the logical strategy would be attack immediately and overwhelm Hypnos while Moros is scanning. Concentrate the firepower on Medea to stop her healing, and then the rest should be toast. But now Moros has completed his scan, all we can do is to overpower them through sheer brute force…."

As I was talking, an inferno emitted from Medea and washed over the Shadow Operatives. Adachi and Mitsuru were knocked down, but I managed to jump over the flames thanks to Angelic Grace. Looking around, I saw that Narukami, Yukiko, Koromaru, and Junpei were the only other ones standing ready. All the other Shadow Operatives have been either knocked off their feet, or were recovering from the powerful fire spell. Yukiko quickly summoned her Persona.

"**Mediarahan**!" As the healing wave descended upon us, I saw Hypnos form a hand seal.

**Bufudyne.** The ice spell was headed straight towards Yukiko, who had just dismissed her Persona. She turned around and her eyes widened as the stream of ice headed in her direction.

"Oh no you don't! **Bufudyne!**" At a wave of Chicot's hand, an ice wall shot up in front of Yukiko, intercepting the ice arrow and shattering both. "We can't have you killing our healer this early in the game. That would kill all the fun, won't it, my old friends?" Smirking a bit, I looked back at the trio. Medea was standing at the back, Moros slightly to the front left of her. Hypnos stood at the very front in the middle. The empty space to the right of Hypnos drew my attention.

'_Shit…. That was your, our, position in the formation… You should be standing there Chicot… WE should be standing there. We should be fighting with our friends, not against them. Even the Swiss mercenaries and Landsknechts never fought against their own. What went wrong?'_

'_The world went wrong Caius. It used to be that when you lost your friends you can lie them down in peace and move on. But now, now they can dig up your friends, create blueprints of them, construct replicas of them, and send them in as your enemies. This world has gone to shit ten times over….'_

'_I couldn't agree more. Project Prometheus is just another piece of shit in this shit hole of a world…..' _Wiping my eyes, I turned to the rest of the Shadow Operatives.

"Focus fire upon Medea or else we'll never win. Don't use fire, light, or dark. None of them have any weakness." Quickly loading my shotgun again, I started sprinting at the trio. Hypnos lifted his head and stared at me with its empty sockets. I pointed the evoker at my temple as the Shadow lifted its hands to form another hand seal.

**Agidyne. **

"**Bufudyne**!" The giant fireball stuck the wall of ice that emerged in front of me and filled the air with steam. Leaping off my feet, I took advantage of the smoke screen and rolled towards Hypno's right where nobody stood guard. Passing Hypnos, I saw Moros lift a hand in preparation of another spell.

"Dammit, Chicot!" I screamed out loud as the evoker's spiritual bullet tore through my mind once more. Chicot leapt out of my mind and crashed into Moros, pinning the Shadow onto the ground. I heard a crackle of energy behind me, and turned around to see the hollow eyes of Hypnos staring at me. The Shadow was crackling with sparks of energy coursing through its body.

_Shit, the bugger Mind Charged himself…. _Hypnos raised his hand in preparation to form another hand seal.

"It's my turn!" With a feral battle cry, Tatusmi came flying out of nowhere with his giant shield in hand and crashed into Hypnos. "Takeji Zaiten! **Ziodyne**!" The huge Persona waved a hand, and a giant bolt of lightning struck down upon both Shadow and human. Hypnos screeched loudly, but Kanji seemed to enjoy the bolt.

"I live for this moments!" At that time, Hypno's hands raised once more. The spell was cast before I could warn Tatsumi.

**Garudyne.**

The gust of wind sent Kanji flying back with a scream of pain. Hypnos regained its footing and formed another hand seal. Once more, energy started coursing through its body, creating tiny bolt sparking through its limbs.

**Mind Charge.**

"You like wind? Well try this for size!" Takeba shouted at the Shadow before summoning her Persona. "**Panta Rhei**!" The giant cyclone struck Hypnos at the side and sent the Shadow flying. Lifting a hand, the Shadow pointed a finger at Takeba.

**Ziodyne.**

As the giant bolt of electricity arced it way towards Takeba, who braced and closed her eyes, a huge figure stood in front of her and took the blast instead. The lighting struck the large figure, but instead of blasting it back, it circled around the figure and was absorbed instead. The large figure of Takeji Zaiten stood proudly in front of Takeba, fully invigorated. Its owner, Kanji, was similarly standing up and ready to resume the fight.

**Torrent Shot.**

Spinning around, I found Chicot being pushed back by a shower of piercing shots before dematerializing. Moros swiftly regained his footing and pointed its hand at me, a ball of fire charging up in its palms. Gritting my teeth, I crouched slightly, ready to dodge the incoming spell.

**Agidyne.**

Letting Angelic Grace flow through my body, I summersaulted over the fireball spell. As I soared through the air, my gaze turned towards Medea, who was holding her goblet up high. _Shit…_

**Agidyne.**

My eyes widened as I watched the fiery inferno fly closer, unable to dodge in mid-air. Holding the Lupara out in front of me horizontally, I braced for impact.

"Sumeo-Okami!" At the command of its owner, the golden Persona materialized in front of me, absorbing the blast of fire from Medea. Moros, seeing another Persona join the fight, swiftly charged up another spell and sent it howling at Yukiko's Persona.

**Bufudyne.**

"Not so fast!" With a shout, Mitsuru jumped in front of the icy blast, protecting the Persona from its weakness. As Moros raised its hand once more, an iron edged fan flew out of nowhere and knocked its hand aside before returning to the hands of its owner. Folding up the fan, Yukiko walked to the front lines an assumed a fighting stance along with Mitsuru.

Landing from my near brush with death, I faced Medea in front of me. The Shadow was glaring at me with seething hatred. I sighed as I pointed the barrel of my Lupara at her.

"That gaze in your eyes…. You wound me severely Medea…. But it isn't really you, isn't it? The Medea that I knew and loved is gone forever…" I murmured sadly. Medea screeched and flung the contents of it goblet in my direction, forming another fireball.

**Agidyne. **

Springing into the air, I leapt over both the Agi spell and the Shadow that casted it. While I was soaring over Medea's head, I pointed the Lupara downwards and unloaded both barrels into the face of the Shadow below me, cracking her mask. Screaming madly, Medea flailed her dagger around wildly, knocking the shotgun out of my hands. As I landed, I swiftly ducked under Medea's dagger swing and backed out of range. Medea stared at me for a second, and then threw her head back and raised her goblet.

**Spring of Life**.

As the healing aura washed over her once more, the crack on Medea's mask started mending. Seeing that, I drew my dagger and started sprinting towards the Shadow, snarling under my breath.

"No you are NOT going to heal up that wound!"

Noticing my charge, Medea swung her dagger downwards at my head. I sidestepped, and the dagger completely missed me, instead slicing into the ground. The Shadow tried to free its blade, but the dagger was firmly lodged into the ground. Jumping onto Medea's hand, I stepped into the crook of her arm and used that to propel me upwards towards the Shadow's head.

"Magatsu-Izanagi! **Heat Riser**!" Adachi's voice rang up somewhere behind me, and I felt the extra surge of energy course through my body.

_I owe that bastard another whiskey when this is over…_

"Raghhhhhhhh!" Unleashing a fierce battle-cry, I jammed the stiletto into the crack on Medea's mask, causing the Shadow to scream and flail around wildly. I wrapped my legs around Medea's neck to stabilize myself and started to wrench the dagger left and right, widening the crack. As the crack widened, Medea screamed even louder, and her struggling intensified. I grit my teeth at the sound and tried to focus upon the task at hand.

_It's not her. It's not her. It's just another enemy for you to kill. Dammit Caius, you like this kind of shit, so why….?_

As I continued widening the crack, a flash of movement caught my eye. Medea was pouring her goblet of venom at me. The green smoking fluid flew out of the goblet straight towards me. Raising my left arm, I protected my face while the liquid splattered all over me

**Poisma**.

I screamed in pain as the poison burned away skin to reveal the tendons, muscles, and bone within. While I was distracted by the pain, Medea threw me off her shoulders with one strong shake, and wrenched her dagger out of the ground. Still paralyzed by the poison, I landed in a heap at her feet. Looking up, I saw Medea raising her dagger in preparation for the final strike.

"**Vorpal Blade**!" Countless slashes forced Medea back as Adachi stepped over me to face her. Looking back, the detective grimaced at my burns before turning back to face the Shadow. "Bro, you need to do something about those burns…"

"Oh… really…? I… would never… have… came to… that conclusion…myself…" As I choked out the response, I drew my evoker with the less burned hand and pulled the trigger to my head. "**Amrita**…" The command came out as barely a whimper, but it was still heard nevertheless. As the healing wave washed over me, I felt the burning pain of the poison disappear, but the deep burns caused by it remained.

_'You might want one of the healers look at that later.'_ Chicot commented.

_'What is with everyone stating the obvious today?! Jesus Christ…' _

I shifted to my side and saw Medea clawing at her face, trying to pull out the knife still stuck on her mask, but failing to do so. Screaming in frustration, she raised her dagger and charged at Adachi and me. The former detective tensed up, and Magatsu-Izanagi appeared in front of him, blade at the ready.

"**Brave Blade**!" A figure blurred past Adachi and Magatsu, intercepting Medea in her charge. With a single, fluid slash, Trismegistus decapitated the Shadow, sending her lifeless body crashing to the ground.

As the Persona dematerialized, I turned around to see Junpei standing behind me with a hollow expression, tears flowing down his face. He soon collapsed and curled into a ball, shaking with sobs.

'_These Shadow Operatives. They may be a lot more capable than we give them credit for…' _Chicot remained silent at my remark.

"Finally! The interference is gone, we can scan them now!" Rise and Fuuka's voice came from behind. "Get ready people, we are sending in their info!" I felt a presence probe into my mind, and I noticed that Hypnos and Moros seemed to be moving a lot slower. No, it wasn't that, it was…

'_We are getting sent info on what Hypnos and Moros would do, before they do it… We're pretty much looking 3 seconds into the future as far as they're concerned…'_

'_Jesus, so that's why they wanted to complete the scan before fighting… If this had worked, it would've been a piece of cake to defeat the trio…' _

I shifted to my side, trying to get up, only to collapse in pain as my burns touched the floor. Noticing this, Adachi quickly placed a hand on my shoulder, holding me down.

"You are in no state to fight. And you don't need to anymore. I think the Shadow Ops have this covered."

Looking up, I noticed that he was right. Kanji and Yukari were easily evading Hypnos attacks while landing countless spells of their own, and on the other end Mitsuru and Yukiko also seemed to be having an easy time dealing with Moros. As I was looking at Moros, I noticed a green blur rush in his direction. Moros also noticed it, as he lifted a hand towards the newcomer.

**Agidyne**.

Chie deftly side stepped past the fireball and resumed her charge on the Shadow, laughing out loud as she does so.

"Hahaha! Nope, you can't get me!"

Moros swung an arm around, but Chie quickly dropped to her knees and slid under the punch, jumping back to her feet behind the mechanical Shadow. Her body was tensed like a spring.

"My turn! **Galactic Punt**!" Chie unleashed a devastating kick, launching Moros across the room and crashing into Hypnos in a confusing pile. Chie quickly drew her evoker and pointed it at her temple. "Alright guys, let's pile up!"

The hall was lit as bright as day by the battle auras of all 12 combat members of the Shadow Operatives summoning their Personas at the same time.

**Brave Blade, Panta Rhei, Nifhein, Burning Petals, Thunder Reign, Vorpal Blade, Megidolaon…..**

The hurricane of spells fused into one roaring wave crashing down upon the two fallen Shadows, creating a giant shockwave that shook the very earth itself. Before all the dust had settled, a few more people charged out of the formations of the Shadow Operatives and rushed towards the center of the giant explosion.

"It's time, Yukiko!" "Coming Chie!" The two girls danced around each other and summoned their Personas at the same time.

"**Twin Dragons**!"

"Yosuke-!" "I'm coming, stupid bear!" Hanamura and Teddie both jumped into the air, almost crashing into each other but still managing to summon their Personas at the same time.

"**Junes Bomber**!"

"Naoto! For old time's sake!" "Very well!" Kanji rushed in with his shield raised while Shirogane rolled in front of him, their Personas circling them.

"**Beauty and the Beast**!"

"Aigis-san, may I have this dance?" "Still the lady's man as always, Narukami." Despite their teasing, the two field leaders advanced as one unit, Izanagi and Orpheus following behind them.

"**Dance of Fools**!"

With each summoning, a powerful spell descended upon where Hypnos and Moros lay. When each spell fell, a tremor ran through the ground and a shrill shriek ran up. By the time all the dust had settled, I had tear my eyes away from what it revealed.

Moros lay prone in the center of the wreckage, its body cracked and dented, stray electrical sparks sparking out of his body, the binary code on his body fizzling in and out. A horrible clanking sound emitted from his body as the damaged machinery tried in vain to maintain the Shadow's existence. Under Moros, Hypnos lay, shadowy ichor leaking out of his body, his wings literally uprooted from his spine and lying at the side. With his wings uprooted, one could see the deep scars left behind on his body by his unwanted wings.

_I'm sorry. I'm sorry my friends. There was no other way…. _I closed my eyes as tears threatened to come out again. The whirling and clanking of Moro's body slowly died down, and Hypnos let out one final sigh before both Shadows dissolved.

"**Mediarahan**!" As Yukari's healing spell surrounded us, I felt an intense itching as the skin on my body started crawling back over the deep burns left over by Medea's poison. Crawling back to my feet, I tensed up as Matsumoto's voice rang through the hall again.

"So I see you've defeated my guardians. Congratulations Shadow Operatives, it seems that Ikutsuki's evaluations of you were not exaggerated. Proceed then, and we shall meet in person."

_I will kill you. I will revel in seeing your eyes glaze over as the relief of death claims you from my grasp… _Snarling to myself, I searched the ground for my shotgun and dagger. Finding both of them, a patch of white on the ground caught my eye. Picking it up, I discovered that it was a fragment of Medea's mask.

'_By the gods, what have we just gone through?'_

'_An experience that should never have existed.' _Chicot answered morosely. _'And, while I hate to say this, you might want to drop that. It's still alive, to an extent…'_

'_What do you…?' _Before I can finish my question, I felt the mask fragment in my hand tremble a bit.

**Spring of Life.**

A single eye opened and stared at me fearfully from the eye hole of the fragment in my hands. I stared at the eye, a tear falling down my cheek. Then I dropped the fragment and crushed it under my heel, a tiny, barely audible scream coming from under my foot.

'_Rest in peace Medea…. Rest in peace… friends….'_

Reloading my shotgun, I turned to see the rest of the Shadow Operatives readying for battle as well. Even Junpei, still looking shaken up, was on his feet and hefting his spiked bat. I looked towards the double doors that let underground towards the bomb shelter. Towards Matsumoto.

"Let's do this…."

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Chicot Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Weak Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Evil Smile

Ghastly Wail

Survive Light

* * *

><p>AN: This was so fun to write! And please understand it was impossible to give everyone a substantial role in the fight. It's just too huge of a cast! And as you all noticed, I took a bit of artistic license with Narukami and Aigis' co-op spell. They're both Fools and Wild Cards, so it seemed like a shame to not build on that…. As always, please R&R!


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

_Flashbacks and inner thoughts_

'_Persona talk'_

**Spells used by Persona**

Disclaimer: I only own the OC.

Warning: Graphic and explicit content in this chapter. You have been warned.

* * *

><p>After we entered the bomb shelter, it was obvious that Project Prometheus had occupied this space for a long time, and that they have evacuated in quite a hurry. Glass tanks like the ones holding Hypnos, Medea, and Moros stood around, with the containment liquid still covering the bottoms. Experiment tables like the ones I was experimented on under Watanabe also stood around, with one of them still having a lifeless body strapped on to it.<p>

_'It seems like they pulled the switch on everyone once the evacuation order came in.'_

_ 'Didn't that happen to us as well? Twice?'_

_ 'The difference is that we survived both times, Chicot. They didn't. Dam this place brings back bad memories….'_

_ 'You're not the only one. Look.'_

Following Chicot's line of thought, I looked over at Shirogane, who was nervously glancing at the experiment tables. Her expression wasn't one of righteous fury, although that emotion did surface when she saw the dead body. It was more…. fearful? Uncomfortable? Those tables definitely reminded her of something unpleasant. Snarling under my breath, I picked up the pace.

_'I've had enough of this mind-fuck of a mission. Let's kill or capture the son-of-a-bitch ASAP so that I can go deal with a nice bottle of whiskey….'_

We eventually reached a large opening within the underground bomb shelter. Across the entrance, countless monitors and control panels stood. I glanced at the monitors and did a double take. Upon each side monitor a rotating image of a member of the Shadow Operative and their Persona was displayed, along with various stats. And on the main monitor on the center of the wall, a video of our fight against the Strega replicas played.

A huge rotating armchair was turned away from us and facing the monitors. A rapid clicking of keyboards could be heard emitting behind it, as well as a low, frantic muttering.

"This… this is marvelous! Simply fantastic! All this power…. And look at those numbers! I want one! I MUST HAVE ONE!" The frantic mutterings eventually turned to full on ranting. Mitsuru took a step forward.

"Matsumoto. You are charged with the crime of kidnapping, inhumane experiments, and murder as well as numerous other charges. In the name of the Shadow Operatives, you are under arrest!" The figure behind the chair paused for a moment, then a short cough and low chuckle followed.

"Ah yes, Mitsuru-san. I do remember seeing you pass by when your grandfather brought you and your father to the Kirijo Ergo Labs. I also remember hearing the news when you awakened to your Persona. Your grandfather was a poor man indeed. Only a handful, including Ikutsuki and I, ever understood his passion for the Shadows and Persona. But his son, the traitor, dedicated a lifetime to unraveling his life's work, and now, you, his granddaughter, stand before me to destroy one of the last bastions of his legacy. And you call yourself a Kirijo?"

"Do not speak of my father like that! You are not worthy of even mentioning the Kirijo name! Now you can enter our custody quietly and peacefully, or we can drag you with us screaming and kicking! Your choice!" I blinked in surprise at Mitsuru's outburst. The Kirijo heiress was visibly shaking with anger, her teeth grinding against each other. I have never seen her give such a violent display of anger.

The revolving chair spun, revealing a man in his late 60's wearing a lab coat. A wild tangle of white hair sat atop a cleanly shaven face. A pair of cold, calculating eyes sat behind wire-rimmed glasses, while a smile stretched the waxy skin taunt. I shivered slightly at the aura of confidence and madness that emitted from this man sitting on the chair.

_He's no Watanabe. He's the real deal._

Matsumoto sat straighter, and held both arms out towards the Shadow Operatives.

"Well then, since I'm under arrest, would one of you kindly cuff me and help an old man out of his chair?"

Mitsuru glanced at Akihiko, who nodded. Pulling a set of handcuffs out of his pocket, the boxer took slow, careful steps towards the old man sitting on the chair. The whole group seemed to hold their breath as Akihiko walked slowly across the room. Halfway there, the boxer stopped, and held out a hand in front of him, as if testing for something. Without warning, the boxer crouched and threw a straight punch forward, his fist colliding against an unseen surface, causing a shockwave to ripple out from the point of impact. The shockwave showed a large surface standing between the Shadow Operatives and Matsumoto. A chuckle came from Matsumoto.

"Oh, did I forget to mention that there's a wall there? Two layers of tektite-reinforced bullet-proof glass with one layer of Shadow containment glass sandwiched in between. I believe that even for the likes of you that would be neigh impossible to shatter in a short amount of time, no?"

"So what's your point?" Adachi drawled out beside me. "You just made sure that you have the front row seat while we smash down your defenses and capture you anyway. Face it old man, your guardians are dead, and I don't see you pulling out more Shadows out of your ass."

"Oh my, am I hearing the voice of the infamous Tohru Adachi, mastermind behind the Inaba murders? Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am a big fan of your work. And to answer your question, no I do not intend to just sit here while you tear down this wall. I do have guardians up my sleeve. In fact, they are standing right in front of me." Hearing that, I swiftly lifted my Lupara, eyes darting left and right for signs of overlooked threats. The rest of the Shadow Operatives also assumed a fighting stance of some sort. Matsumoto chuckled.

"Oh, relax… the guardian I'm speaking of…. Is among you!" With those words, the elderly scientist pulled out an instrument looking like a rifle and shot a beam of light at the gathered Shadow Operatives. As I looked on with shock, the beam pierced through the chest of Adachi.

The effect was immediate. Dropping his gun, Adachi fell to his knees, grasping his head and snarling in pain. A red summoning aura surround him, and Magatsu Izanagi materialized behind Adachi's prone figure, flailing its blade wildly.

**Vorpal Blade.**

I covered my head with my arms, gritting my teeth as the countless slashes generated by the berserk Persona pushed the Shadow Operatives away. Swinging around, Magatsu aimed a kick at Adachi, sending the detective flying. I quickly drew my evoker and pulled the trigger.

"Chicot!" With the utterance of his name, Chicot materialized and caught the flying figure of Adachi. Running over, I joined my Persona and cradled the prone form of the fallen detective. All the Shadow Operatives were circling Magatsu with uncertainty, the rogue Persona clutching its own head as if in pain.

"You see, this little contraption here," Matsumoto leered as us while stroking the rifle like object in his hand, "is a much more powerful version of the evokers that you use. The range of the normal evokers are almost negligible unless the muzzle is touching the target's skin. But with this neo-evoker, as I like to call it, the range can go up to 50 meters, or 150 feet!

"But of course that alone is not enough to drive a Persona berserk. A Persona, even when summoned involuntarily, still belongs to its owner. So the second function of this neo-evoker, is a powerful… Shadow-steroid, so to speak. The function of such is pretty much opposite to that of the Persona suppressants which you are all so familiar with." Matsumoto jeered at us while Magatsu started running amok, slashing and striking at all within range.

"Why would you develop something like that?!" The shocked voice of Chie rang up as she narrowly ducked under a blade slash.

"Well, the technology was developed to fulfill our initial goal, the isolation and relocation of natural Personas. I just weaponized it as insurance against Persona-wielding invaders such as you."

**Power Charge**.

Magatsu's body was crackling with energy, a thin layer of steam emitting from his body. He raised his blade.

"Oh no! Everyone, the next blow is gonna hit like a truck! Get ready!" At Rise's warning, all of the Shadow Operatives braced themselves. Taking a step over Adachi, I braced myself over his twitching body.

"I got you bro."

_'And I got both of you.'_ Chicot shifted over and raised his cross as a shield. I chuckled, and then prepared for Magatsu's blow.

**Vorpal-**

"Ma…ga…tsu…" The rogue Persona paused his attack as Adachi muttered his name. Looking under me, I saw the detective reaching out towards his confused Persona. "Ma…ga...tsu… you bastard… come… back…here… Did you… forget your… promise? Even if… the world is… my foe… you would… stand by… me… and I would… stand by… you… I… am thou… and thou… art I…"

The energy around Magatsu Izanagi started to dissipate as the Persona lowered its blade. The Shadow Operatives let loose a sigh of relief. Behind the glass wall, Matsumoto frowned. Narukami turned and faced the old scientist.

"You see that? Bonds like the one between the Persona and its wielder cannot be simply broken by trickery like yours. The strength of bonds are what powers us, and allows us to defeat people like you!" A few of the Shadow Ops nodded in agreement. Matsumoto looked thoughtful.

"Yes. I see now. It seems that there is a strong bond between the Persona and its user. I understand now. I understand that I need to administer a higher dose!" Lifting the neo-evoker once more, the scientist shot another beam of light through the chest of Magatsu Izanagi.

"Argggggggghhhhhhhhh!" A loud scream from the detective I was protecting and the rogue Persona in front of me rose up at the same time. Adachi convulsed and his eyes rolled back. Magatsu collapsed onto his knees, clutching his head in pain. Black shadowy ichor leaked out of from his whole body, creating a large pool of shadowy goo underneath him and pulling him in.

"Everyone, back up! I sense something big coming out! Oh no… I sensed this before…." At Rise's warning, the Shadow Operatives quickly retreated. Holstering the Lupara and evoker, I pulled Adachi's limp body into a fireman carry and sprinted away from the mass of shadows that Magatsu Izanagi had descended into. After drawing a large enough distance, I set Adachi down and looked back to the shadowy mass.

From the center of the pool, a single eye opened. I shivered at the neon-colored irises that looked more like camera lens than human eye. As the eye started floating out of the shadowy mass, metal panels slowly arose as well and surrounded the eye, fusing onto a giant sphere with countless pipes and nozzles sticking out of the. The giant eye blinked once and then turned to regard us.

"I am Ameno-Sagiri, ruler of the fog. I see that there are those among you who defied me last time. I shall right that wrong, and fulfill mankind's true wishes…." Behind Ameno-Sagiri, Matsumoto was hyperventilating with excitement.

"Oh. My. God. No wonder he told me to target Adachi! It's… it's beautiful! To think that one unworthy as I can behold a god… It's unbelievable… Power enough to dwarf all the Shadows and Persona I have studied… It is perfection itself! I MUST HAVE ONE!" As Matsumoto ranted, Ameno-Sagiri sank lower into the ground and released a giant cloud of fog with a loud hiss.

**Bewildering Fog.**

"Everyone, hold your attack! The fog will lead all attacks astray. Wait until the fog is down before you strike!" At Rise's advice, the Shadow Operatives all assumed a defensive stance. Several of them, such as Yukiko and Kanji, casted Mind Charge or Power Charge.

**Tarakuja.** A veil of light arose around Ameno-sagiri and infused itself into the massive Shadow. I crouched lower over Adachi, and Chicot in front of me braced himself behind his cross.

**Power Charge.** Sparks of energy crackled down the sides of the massive Shadow. Narukami waved at Shirogane, who nodded and pointed her evoker at her temple.

**Nebula Oculus. **Suddenly opening his eye wide, Ameno-Sagiri unleashed a giant beam of energy upon the gathered Shadow Operatives. At the same time, the firing of an evoker can be heard and Shirogane's voice rose.

"An act of self-defense! **Shield of Justice**!" Ethereal riot shields materialized in front all of the Shadow Operatives, negating the damage of Ameno-Sagiri's attack. The fog dissipated.

"The fog is down, he is vulnerable! NOW!" At a shout from Rise, the Shadow Operatives unleashed their wrath upon the massive Shadow.

**Brave Blade, Primal Force, Nifheim, Panta Rhei, Thunder Reign, Gigantic Fist…**

The huge torrent of spells crashed into Ameno-Sagiri with a huge explosion, forcing the Shadow back. Before I could even smile at this development, I heard Adachi's body convulse violently. Looking back, I was shocked to see the former detective coughing up pools of blood.

"I… can feel… every blow… every spell… that lands upon… that monstrosity…" I paled at Adachi's mumbling, and shouted out to the Shadow Ops.

"Hold your fire! That thing is still connected to Adachi! Every blow landed on that thing would deal damage to Adachi as well!"

"WHAT?!" Narukami looked aghast at that revelation, as did most of the other Shadow Operatives.

"You heard me! That giant disco eyeball is still based upon his Persona! Hold your fucking fire!"

**Bewildering Fog. **The giant figure of Ameno-Sagiri was once again obscured by the fog. Narukami turned to Rise and Fuuka.

"Is that true? Are they really connected?" The two immediately summoned their Personas.

"….Yes. We can sense a connection between Adachi and Ameno-Sagiri. It's similar to what we usually sense between Personas and their users…"

**Tarakuja. **The veil of light once more infused itself into the giant Shadow. The Shadow Operatives were unsure of what to do, and Narukami was yelling at the two sensors.

"Well? Is there any way to circumvent this connection? Or sever it?"

"Senpai do you know what you're asking us to attempt?" Rise shouted back, "You're asking us to try and sever the connection between Adachi and his Persona!"

**Power Charge. **Ameno-Sagiri was brimming with energy again. I saw Shirogane tense up and lift her evoker once more.

"Shit!" I heard the silver-haired leader curse, perhaps for the first time in his life. "Is there really nothing you can do?"

"Narukami-san, the connection is not enforced upon Adachi-san. It's his natural connection with his Persona. We can't simply remove it without serious consequences!" Fuuka shouted.

**Nebula Oculus. **

"**Shield of Justice**!" The giant beam once again swept towards the Shadow Operatives, only to be blocked again by the ethereal riot shields summoned by Shirogane's Persona.

**Bewildering Fog.**

As the giant Shadow once more sunk into the fog, I heard Hanamura's voice ring up somewhere.

"Yo, can Adachi do anything about this? I mean, it is HIS Persona right?" I grit my teeth at his comment and shouted back.

"Are you fucking kidding me? He's barely breathing, what do you want him to do? Talk to his Persona again? You saw how well THAT ended!"

**Tarakuja.**

"Okay, okay! What else can we do? In case you haven't noticed, the giant eyeball's been at it the whole time!"

"Narukami!" Mitsuru's voice rang up. "We can't afford to waste time now! We need to take action!"

**Power Charge.**

"But…. I…" An expression of immense conflict tore through Narukami's face. Many of the other Shadow Operatives wore similar expressions, including Mitsuru. Matsumoto's laugh rang through the underground lab.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAH…! I see the strength of your bonds, Shadow Operatives. In fact, such bonds are serving me well! Show me more of this power!" Narukami was visibly trembling with anger.

**Nebula Oculus.**

"**Shield of Justice**!" As the giant beam was once again blocked by the riot shields, Shirogane dropped down on one knee. "Senpai… I'm afraid… I'm nearing my limit…"

"NAOTO! Anyone here got a Chewing Soul or something?" Narukami looked around frantically.

"Dude, those are RARE, even in the TV world! Do we look like we have them?!"

As I was racking my mind to think of a way out of this mess, a hand grabbed my ankle. Looking down, I saw Adachi mouthing something at me.

**Bewildering Fog.**

Crouching down to his level, I leaned in to hear what Adachi was trying to say. His voice was hoarse and rasping.

"Waste… too much… time…. Do it…"

"Do what?" I asked, dread entering my heart.

"Hehehe… your promise… to Strega… upon me… Do it… Now…"

**Tarakuja. **

My eyes widened at what Adachi was proposing. I clenched my fists in anger.

"No, dammit! What did I tell you? Not until all hope is lost! That was the terms of the agreement!"

**Power Charge.**

"I can't… feel Magatsu… anymore… He's there… but he's gone… It hurts… so much…"

"But… I…" I was unable to form a coherent sentence as tears started welling up in my eyes.

"Hehehe… look… around… Caius… Do you… see hope… around us…?"

**Nebula Oculus. **As Ameno-Sagiri widened its eye again, Shirogane warily lifted her evoker once more.

"**Shield of Justice**!" Among the loud explosions caused by the clashing of spells, a shriek was heard. After the dust settled, Shirogane was on the ground, clutching her head and trembling.

"NAOTO!" Narukami quickly rushed to Shirogane's side and picked up the pint-size detective, carrying her away from the front lines.

"Dammit, we need to attack or we won't survive! Consequences be dammed!" Hanamura's voice rang up, and Mitsuru nodded in agreement. But most of the Shadow Operatives still seemed unsure about doing something that would severely injure a comrade.

"You…see? Bunch of… pussies. They are… far too… naïve… even Kirijo…" Adachi's halting voice rasped at me.

**Bewildering Fog.**

"You remember… what I… told you… before the… raid…?" I nodded, his words right before the operation echoing in my mind.

_"He's the best thing that happened to me in a long time. And he's mine. He's my sub-consciousness, my id. Nobody else's. I would die before I allow him to be taken from me."_

"Then… you should… know what… to do…" I took a deep breath to steel myself for what was about to come.

**Tarakuja.**

I drew my dagger and held it at ready. I wiped my eyes of the tears that were blocking my view, and took a good look at Adachi.

"You are a fucking bastard son-of-a-bitch, you do know that, right?"

"Hehehe… love you too… Caius… See you… in Hell…"Adachi chuckled painfully.

"See you in Hell." I agreed, forcing a smile through my tears.

My hand rose.

**Power Charge.**

The dagger fell.

**Nebula Ocu- **

Ameno-Sagirii stopped in the middle of its attack, its single eye suddenly holding a vacant expression.

I grit my teeth as I felt the vibrations of a failing heart through the tip of the blade to the handle in my palm.

_Ba-dum… Ba-dum…. Ba-dum…...… Ba-dum…...Ba-dum…...Ba-dum…..._

The line went flat. The hand clasped around my collar loosened. A last sigh escaped Adachi's lips as his face settled into a serene smile. Horrified gasps rang out as the Shadow Operatives noticed my actions. Matsumoto roared in frustration.

"NO! What have you done? You've ruined the most precious specimen I've come across yet! Oh my, he will not be pleased… he will not be pleased…"

Ameno-Sagiri trembled, and then exploded into a multitude of panels. In the middle floated Magatsu-Izanagi.

Chicot materialized beside me and sprinted forward, catching the other Persona as he fell. As Chicot cradled the limp form of Magatsu-Izanagi, the other Persona painfully lifted his spear. Pushing the weapon into Chicot's hand, Magatsu grabbed on to Chicot's arm for few seconds before falling limp. Throwing his head back, Chicot let loose a scream of anguish as the two Personas were engulfed in a red aura.

_The resolution in Caius's heart has awakened a new Persona,_

_Chicot has given rise to Eubuleus!_

Out of the red aura stepped Eubuleus. He retained Chicot's face and giant shackled marionette cross, but on his other hand he held Magatsu's spear. His body was covered with Magatsu's trench coat, but the front hung open, revealing a dark metal chest piece fashioned in the shape of a snarling boar. Within the boar's eyes and mouth eerie green flames flickered.

Looking away from my new Persona, I turned my gaze back at the dead detective in my arms. Grasping the dagger that still pierced his heart, I yanked it out, releasing a spurt of blood that splattered along my arm. Dropping the dagger, I looked down on my bloody hand, trembling as teardrops fell off my face and into my palm.

"Well, well, well… So you absorbed his Persona? In that case, I'll just have to rip yours out AS WELL!" With an inhuman scream, Matsumoto grabbed the neo-evoker and aimed it at me.

**Bufudyne.**

With a flick of my thoughts, Eubuleus pointed his spear at Matsumoto. An icy blast flew towards the mad scientist, hitting the glass wall and spreading a thick layer of near-opaque ice over the entire surface.

"USELESS! Didn't I tell you I am untouchable?! I will have the Shadow God I was promised! Now DIE!" As Matsumoto pulled the trigger, the beam of light shot straight at me. It passed through the glass wall, but was refracted by the uneven surface of the ice and flew right over my head.

**Power Charge.**

I gently set Adachi down on the ground, and slowly stood up to face Matsumoto. All my joints popped as sparks of energy surged through my limbs. A light steam rose from my body as my perspiration evaporated from the intense rise of body heat.

"I don't know who told you to target Adachi, nor do I care why. But you made a grave mistake when deciding to mess with the only two hardened killers on this team… **Atom Smasher**!"

Eubuleus threw his head back and screamed in rage as he swung his spear around. Countless purple slashes flew from him and crashed against the glass wall.

"I told you this is two layers of tektite-reinforced bullet-proof glass with one layer of Shadow containment glass in between! You will never-" Matsumoto's gloating expression froze as a crack appeared on the glass wall.

"Your last protection is crumbling! Feel FEAR!" As I screamed, the glass wall shattered into shards. Matsumoto raised the neo-evoker once more, but one of the slashes sliced his arm off. A purple aura surrounded him as he collapsed, screaming and trembling with fear.

"Now, for the finishing touches…" As I walked towards Matusmoto, a hand landed on my shoulder, holding me back. Looking back in anger, I saw Mitsuru.

"Caius, we need him alive. He's also taking orders-"

"DO I LOOK LIKE I CARE?! LET GO OF ME!" As I shook off Mitsuru's grasp, an icy gust exploded from me, pushing the Kirijo heiress and the Shadow Operatives back. As if reading my mind, Eubuleus instantly crafted an ice tunnel, with me at one end and Matsumoto at the other.

_Nobody can interfere now…_

"MATSUMOTOOOOOOOOOOOO!" As I sprinted towards the fallen scientist, I opened my right hand and pushed it forwards, clenching Matsumoto by the jaw and pinning him against the wall with one hand. The ice tunnel shattered behind me, as I observed Matsumoto's fear-stricken eyes.

"Tell me Matsumoto. What's in my hand right now is the blood and tears of your enemies. Tell me, does is not taste sweet for you?" Only desperate gasps for breathe came from the old man.

**Ghastly Wail. **

Matsumoto's body erupted into a fountain of scarlet, spraying all over me and everything around us. Wiping my eyes from the slick scarlet liquid, I looked down on the dismembered head still in my hands, before tossing it away.

"Tch. Trash"

I walked back to where Adachi's body lay, leaving a trail of bloody footprints in my wake. The rest of the Shadow Operatives gave me a wide berth, but I didn't care. I never cared. Kneeling down, I cradled the body of my best friend and drinking buddy once more.

"Hey… hey bro… I packed you some lunch for your trip down. I sent that son-of-a-bitch Matsumoto to be the Ruggieri to your Ugolino. I wonder if you'll enjoy the meal…" Holding the body, still warm, closer to my chest, I trembled as I felt the last of my composure fading. "Please tell me… that you'll enjoy… the meal…"

The underground laboratory echoed with my anguished cries…

* * *

><p>"In his final year, Tohru Adachi found redemption and purpose. In the P-1 incident, he prevented deaths and played a pivotal role in the defeat of the culprit. And in his service to the Shadow Operatives, he played many an important role in the protection of humanity from the Shadow threat. It could be said that…"<p>

_'That is far from the Adachi we knew…' _Eubuleus commented in the back of my head.

_'Only a handful ever truly knew him. That's the plight of killers like us…'_

It was a small funeral in a cemetery owned by the Kirijo Corps. Only the Shadow Operatives were present to hear Mitsuru deliver the eulogy. I stood away from the rest of the mourners, barely noticing the occasional angry look thrown in my direction.

Eventually, the coffin was buried, and the mourners started to leave. I stayed, but I was not the only one. Mitsuru was behind me. I heard her cough lightly.

"I am sorry to bring this up now… but I must say your initial assessment was correct. Despite the effectiveness of your methods, you do disrupt the team dynamics of the Shadow Operatives-"

"Meaning that you're terminating our contract, right?" A brief pause from Mitsuru.

"That is correct." An envelope was handed to me. "Within is the statement check for the time you worked under me, as well as a bonus fee. The funds have already been transferred to your account, so this is for reference purposes only." I nodded silently as I received my check and stuffed it into my pocket. Mitsuru turned around to leave, then paused.

"For what it is worth Caius, I do not blame you for Adachi's death. Some of the others do, but they do not see that it was the only way we could have survived."

"Heh. Well that's what you hired me for, right? Just fulfilling my end of the contract. It was a pleasure working under you, Kirijo-san."

"It was a pleasure." Mitsuru's footsteps faded away. I looked at the tiny gravestone of Adachi. It was the only reminder to the world that detective and serial killer Tohru Adachi had once walked this Earth.

_'No. It's not the only reminder.'_ Eubuleus muttered to me. _'Magatsu-Izanagi lives within me. We are the living mementos of Adachi's existence.'_

_ 'Heh. Fitting, I guess.' _

As night started to fall, I reached into my bag and pulled out a bottle of whiskey and two glasses. Placing one in front of the tombstone, I filled both glasses with whiskey and sat down.

"You know, I still owe you a bottle of whiskey from the Strega replicas fight. So here you go. Now don't be picky about what brand it is. It's the best I can afford, bro…" I lifted my glass up in a toast to Adachi.

"Now, bottoms up." I grimaced as the fiery liquid slid down my throat.

* * *

><p>Name: Caius Gevauden<p>

Persona: Eubuleus Arcana: Death

Affinities:

Physical: Resist Fire: Weak Ice: Null Wind: - Thunder: - Light: Null Darkness: Null

Skills:

Jester's Privilege (special skill. Heat Riser + Debilitate)

Bufudyne

Mabufudyne

Amrita

Angelic Grace

Atom Smasher

Ghastly Wail

Power Charge

* * *

><p>AN: You guys are going to hate me for this chapter, but this plot point came with the conception of Caius as a character. Sorry everyone! And as for Caius blowing Mitsuru away with an ice spell, remember right after Hermes turned into Trismegistus in P3, Junpei blasted Jin away with fire. Let's just think about that.

Anyway, thanks to **BLACK FLAME09 **for helping in Eubuleus's design! Couldn't have done it without ya!

On another note, college is gonna start soon. This story is far from over, but I might not be able to update next week. After that, I'll keep it at a weekly update. I hope.

Okay, everyone, please R&R!


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